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The Salt Lake City Public Library system's main branch building is an architecturally unique structure in
Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...
,
Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...
. It is located at 210 East, 400 South, across from the
Salt Lake City and County Building The Salt Lake City and County Building, usually called the "City-County Building", is the seat of government for Salt Lake City, Utah. The historic landmark formerly housed offices for Salt Lake County government as well, hence the name. History ...
and Washington Square.


History

The Salt Lake City Public Library was originally housed in the
Salt Lake City and County Building The Salt Lake City and County Building, usually called the "City-County Building", is the seat of government for Salt Lake City, Utah. The historic landmark formerly housed offices for Salt Lake County government as well, hence the name. History ...
in 1898. Thanks to a donation of land and money by a John Quackenbos Packard in 1900, a
new library New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
was built in downtown Salt Lake City; the building is now 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 ...
. This building remained in use until the library outgrew it by the early 1960s. The city library was then moved to a new home across from the City and County Building at the intersection of 500 South and 200 East. The groundbreaking ceremony was held on December 28, 1962, and the building was dedicated on October 30, 1964. In 1965, the old library was renovated into the Hansen Planetarium, funded by a donation of $400,000 from Beatrice M. Hansen.


1994 hostage incident

On March 7, 1994, a gunman took several hostages in a conference room on the second floor of the old main branch building. The library was evacuated and SWAT teams were called in during a six-hour siege, which ended in the death of the gunman and the freeing of the hostages.


Move to the current location

After celebrating the library's 100th anniversary in early 1998, an $84 million library bond was approved to relocate the library in a new building, north half a block, to its current location. The firm Moshe Safdie and Associates partnered with a local architecture firm, VCBO Architecture, to design the building, which opened to the public on February 8, 2003. The former building in Library Square houses The Leonardo, a museum of science, technology and creativity. On September 15, 2006, a small
bomb A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechan ...
exploded in the third floor of the main building. No one was hurt, and the damage sustained by the building was a broken window. Eastbound traffic on the streets of 400 South and 200 East was closed as 400 people were forced to evacuate.


Suicides and attempted suicides

There have been several public
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...
s at the library since its relocation. In April 2008, a woman jumped from the third floor balcony inside the library and died. In July 2005, a woman jumped from the roof of the building to her death. In March 2011, a woman jumped from the fourth floor inside the building and died. In April 2012, a man jumped from the balcony inside the library to his death. On June 10, 2013, at approximately 4pm, a 21-year-old man jumped to his death from the roof, prompting the closure of the library for the remainder of the day. On November 13, 2013, at approximately 4:15pm, a 21-year-old man was witnessed jumping from the roof of the building. The man survived the fall and was taken to LDS Hospital for his injuries. The event prompted the closure of the library for the remainder of the day.


Building

The Salt Lake City main library covers an area of in a five-story tall, wedge-shaped building. The structure includes of concrete, and of glass, including a five-story curved glass outer wall. The
Vancouver Public Library Vancouver Public Library (VPL) is the public library system for the city of Vancouver, British Columbia. In 2013, VPL had more than 6.9 million visits with patrons borrowing nearly 9.5 million items including: books, ebooks, CDs, DVDs, video gam ...
, also designed by Safdie, shares a similar design—most clearly apparent in the main
foyer A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, reception area or an entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cinema, etc. ...
and the sweeping outer facade. The building is housed within Library Square, a landscaped and paved
plaza A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...
that encompasses the city block. Much of what is now landscaped, open space had been planned to be covered by outbuildings, but
Rocky Anderson Ross Carl "Rocky" Anderson (born September 9, 1951), from the United States, is an attorney, writer, activist, civil and human rights advocate. He served two terms as the 33rd Mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah from 2000 to 2008. He is now running f ...
, Salt Lake City's mayor at the time of the library's opening, asked for these to be left out in favor of creating a public park. A later initiative to create a new headquarters for the Salt Lake City Police Department was also struck down and the building was subsequently placed a block east, directly across from library square. The square is also occupied by shops, a community writing center run by Salt Lake Community College, studios of radio station KCPW-FM and, most notably, The Leonardo Museum, which is housed in the library's former building. The Square itself is paved with limestone from Israel. The entrance to the building's interior leads to the "Urban Room", a foyer that contains more shops and extends upward for all five floors, ending with a skylight. The building is topped by a garden on the roof planted with trees, grasses, flowering bulbs and various perennial plants, as well as tended beehives. In addition, there is a community garden outside of the library's ground floor and a "seed library" from which any patrons can receive seeds for their own gardening. In 2006, the library received
Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional pract ...
's "Library of the Year" award, largely based on the significance of the building. Other notable features of the building include: *Fireplaces on four of the floors and were designed to resemble a column of fire when viewed from 200 East and 400 South. * A "lens" on the south side of the building, which helps to warm the building during the winter, and saves on heating costs. * A gallery displaying works of local artists. * A coffee shop with a private staircase providing direct access to the "Canteena," an area which contains the
young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...
section. * A children's library that is visible from all floors and has special areas for children to read and for baby care. * A spiral staircase and three glass elevators.


Collection

The library's collection comprises over 500,000 books, subscriptions to over 60 newspapers and magazines, an expansive digital library with a variety of resources, 163 internet-capable computers. A notable item in the collection is a 19th century edition of
John James Audubon John James Audubon (born Jean-Jacques Rabin; April 26, 1785 – January 27, 1851) was an American self-trained artist, naturalist, and ornithologist. His combined interests in art and ornithology turned into a plan to make a complete pictori ...
's '' Birds of America'', which was purchased by the library in 1903. The copy is not an original print, rather, it is from a later run commissioned by Audubon's son John in the 1850s. Unlike the first run, the copy's illustrations are not hand-colored, but they are an early example of the then-revolutionary process of
chromolithography Chromolithography is a method for making multi-colour prints. This type of colour printing stemmed from the process of lithography, and includes all types of lithography that are printed in colour. When chromolithography is used to reproduce ph ...
.


References


External links


SLC Public Library Main Page





Salt Lake City Public Library
at FamilySearch Research Wiki for genealogists {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Salt Lake City Education in Salt Lake City Library buildings completed in 1964 Moshe Safdie buildings Public libraries in Utah Squares and plazas in Salt Lake City Tourist attractions in Salt Lake City