The Waterloo Public Library-East Side Branch is a historic building located in Waterloo, Iowa, United States. The

public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil service, civil servants. There are ...

was established here in 1896. It operated out of two rented rooms, one on the east side of the Cedar River and other on the west side. The Carnegie Foundation offered a grant of $30,000 to build a new library, but disagreements erupted over whether to place the building on the east side or west side of the river. with They then agreed to grant $40,000 for a mid-river building, or the same amount for two buildings. In the end they agreed to grant the community $24,000 to build this building and a similar amount for the west side branch. Waterloo architect

John G. Ralston John G. Ralston was an American architect who worked out of Waterloo, Iowa. A number of his works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places for their architecture. Works include (with attribution): *Waterloo Public Library (Wes ...

designed both buildings in the Neoclassical style. Both were dedicated on February 23, 1906. The single-story Bedford stone structure was built over a raised basement. It is one of the few stone buildings in Waterloo. The building has a central portico with paired Ionic columns. It is part of a larger central mass that is oriented from front to back and sits across the lower hipped roof. In 1977 voters in Waterloo approved a $3,650,000 bond referendum to renovate the city's 1938 post office and federal building to house the library. The post office vacated the building in 1979 when it relocated. The old library building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. The building is now used by the city of Waterloo.

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Library buildings completed in 1906 Carnegie libraries in Iowa Neoclassical architecture in Iowa Buildings and structures in Waterloo, Iowa National Register of Historic Places in Black Hawk County, Iowa Libraries on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa 1906 establishments in Iowa {{Iowa-struct-stub