The Puerto Rico National Library ( es, Biblioteca Nacional de Puerto Rico) is the

national library A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, or significant wo ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

. It was created in 1967 as the Biblioteca General de Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico General Library) by Joint Resolution No. 44 of the Puerto Rico Legislature. It opened on April 11, 1973. In 2003 it was renamed Biblioteca Nacional de Puerto Rico by Act 188 of August 17 of that year. The library is ascribed to the

Institute of Puerto Rican Culture The Institute of Puerto Rican Culture ( es, Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña), or ICP, for short, is an institution of the Government of Puerto Rico responsible for the establishment of the cultural policies required in order to study, preser ...

. The Library shares its nineteenth-century classical building, (at one time the

Bacardi Rum Bacardi Limited (; ) is one of the largest privately held, family-owned spirits companies in the world. Originally known for its Bacardi brand of white rum, it now has a portfolio of more than 200 brands and labels. Founded in Cuba in 1862 a ...

flagship factory), with the

General Archives of Puerto Rico The General Archives of Puerto Rico was formally created by Law 5 of December 8, 1955 and placed under the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture which had been created six months before. The main function of the entity is to safeguard and conserve the ...

. The Library's specialized collections include the Dominican Collection of leather-bound religious books dating from the 16th-19th centuries, the Eugenio Maria de Hostos Collection, which includes 1,300 digitized manuscripts, and the private collection of Concha Meléndez, literary critic and former professor at the

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...

. The building is located in

Old San Juan Old San Juan ( es, Viejo San Juan) is a historic district located at the "northwest triangle" of the islet of San Juan. Its area roughly correlates to the Ballajá, Catedral, Marina, Mercado, San Cristóbal, and San Francisco sub-barrios (s ...

. It faces the

Luis Muñoz Rivera Park The Luis Muñoz Rivera Park (or Parque Luis Muñoz Rivera in Spanish) is a 27.2 acre (110,000 m2) recreational public space located in Puerta de Tierra in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The park was named in honor of Puerto Rican statesman Luis Muñoz ...

. It is fully air‐conditioned and has free Internet access. The Library and Archives share a 119-seat amphitheater at street level where each one has its individual side desk, with an unobstructed view.Gómez de Hillyer, Josefina.
The National Library of Puerto Rico
." 2010. The building was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1976 under its former name, Carcel de Puerta de Tierra.

References

Bibliography

External links

* * * History of Puerto Rico Libraries in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rican culture 1967 establishments in Puerto Rico National Register of Historic Places in San Juan, Puerto Rico Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico Bacardi Distilleries on the National Register of Historic Places Industrial buildings completed in 1887 1887 establishments in Puerto Rico Spanish Revival architecture in Puerto Rico Libraries established in 1967 Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico Education in San Juan, Puerto Rico Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico {{PuertoRico-struct-stub