The Harold Washington Library Center is the central library for the

Chicago Public Library The Chicago Public Library (CPL) is the public library system that serves the City of Chicago in the U.S. state of Illinois. It consists of 81 locations, including a central library, two regional libraries, and branches distributed throughout the ...

System. It is located just south of the Loop 'L', at 400 S.

State Street State Street may refer to: Streets and locations *State Street (Chicago), Illinois * State Street (Portland, Maine) *State Street (Boston), Massachusetts *State Street (Ann Arbor), Michigan * State Street (Albany), New York *State Street (Manhatta ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

. It is a full-service library and is ADA compliant. As with all libraries in the Chicago Public Library system, it has free

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio w ...

internet service. The building contains approximately of work space. The total square footage is approximately including the rooftop winter-garden penthouse. It is named in honor of Mayor

Harold Washington Harold Lee Washington (April 15, 1922 – November 25, 1987) was an American lawyer and politician who was the 51st Mayor of Chicago. Washington became the first African American to be elected as the city's mayor in April 1983. He served as ma ...

History

With the conversion of Chicago's former central library into the

Chicago Cultural Center The Chicago Cultural Center, opened in 1897, is a Chicago Landmark building operated by Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events that houses the city's official reception venue where the Mayor of Chicago has welcomed presid ...

in 1977, a long-term temporary central library was opened in the Mandel Building at 425 North Michigan Avenue and much of the library's collection was put into storage. A debate on a new central library ensued and continued throughout most of the 1980s, frustrated by a lack of funding. Upon his election in 1983, Mayor

supported the construction of a new central library. After the turmoil of four mayoral administrations in a seven-year period, finally, in 1986 during Washington's tenure, the city and the Library Board picked a location and floated a $175 million bond issue to provide funds for the new building, as well as the entire citywide library branch system. In 1987, a design competition was held by the city to decide on the architecture of the library. Five prominent entries were chosen from design-build coalitions of architects and contractors, representing designs by VOA Associates in collaboration with

Arthur Erickson Arthur Charles Erickson (June 14, 1924 – May 20, 2009) was a Canadian architect and urban planner. He studied Engineering at the University of British Columbia and, in 1950, received his B.Arch. (Honours) from McGill University. He is known ...

; Hammond, Beeby & Babka; Murphy/Jahn, Lohan Associates, and SOM. The entries were narrowed down to two finalists: The Chicago Library Team with Helmut Jahn's glassy, modern design, and the SEBUS coalition, whose

postmodern Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of modern ...

design by Hammond, Beeby and Babka took elements from nearby historic buildings. Notably, Jahn's design was to have arched over Van Buren Street onto the area that is now occupied by Pritzker Park, incorporating a new elevated station on Chicago's

Loop Loop or LOOP may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Loop (mobile), a Bulgarian virtual network operator and co-founder of Loop Live * Loop, clothing, a company founded by Carlos Vasquez in the 1990s and worn by Digable Planets * Loop Mobile, ...

. These elements were deemed too expensive, along with the rest of Jahn's design, so the Hammond, Beeby and Babka design won the competition. The architectural models that the entrant teams created are located on the eighth floor of the Harold Washington Library Center, except the SEBUS entry, which is located in the ninth floor Special Collections. With the support of Harold Washington and Chicago's wealthy

Pritzker family The Pritzker family is an American family engaged in entrepreneurship and philanthropy, and one of the wealthiest families in the United States of America (staying in the top 10 of ''Forbes'' magazine's "America's Richest Families" list since the ...

, ground was broken at the chosen site at Congress Parkway and State Street, covering an entire block. Upon the building's completion in 1991, the new mayor, Richard M. Daley, named the building in honor of the now-deceased former mayor Harold Washington, an advocate of reading and education among Chicagoans as well as an advocate of the library's construction. Before 1872, Chicago had mainly private libraries. England responded to the

Great Chicago Fire of 1871 The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

by donating over 8,000 books to the city, which became the foundation of the first public library. This collection was housed in a variety of locations, until the Central Library was built in 1891. The Harold Washington Library opened on October 7, 1991. Since completion, the library has appeared in the ''

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

'' as the largest public library building in the world. In 2013 the architect and chairman of Hammond, Beeby and Babka,

Thomas H. Beeby Thomas H. Beeby (born 1941) is an American architect who was a member of the " Chicago Seven" architects and has been Chairman Emeritus of Hammond, Beeby, Rupert, Ainge Architects (HBRA) for over thirty-nine years. He is a representative of New ...

, won the prestigious

Driehaus Architecture Prize The Driehaus Architecture Prize, fully named The Richard H. Driehaus Prize at the University of Notre Dame, is a global award to honor a major contributor in the field of contemporary traditional and classical architecture. The Driehaus Prize was ...

for this and other projects.

Architecture

Exterior

The exterior evokes the design of the

Rookery A rookery is a colony of breeding animals, generally gregarious birds. Coming from the nesting habits of rooks, the term is used for corvids and the breeding grounds of colony-forming seabirds, marine mammals ( true seals and sea lions), an ...

Auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, communit ...

and the

Monadnock An inselberg or monadnock () is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. In Southern Africa a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie ...

buildings. The bottom portion is made of large granite blocks. Red brick makes up the majority of the exterior. These two portions draw on the Beaux-Art style. The

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...

s and most of the west side facing Plymouth Court are glass, steel and aluminum with ornamentation hearkening to the

Mannerist Mannerism, which may also be known as Late Renaissance, is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Ita ...

style. In 1993, the roof was ornamented with seven large, painted aluminum

acroteria An acroterion, acroterium, or akroteria is an architectural ornament placed on a flat pedestal called the ''acroter'' or plinth, and mounted at the apex or corner of the pediment of a building in the classical style. An acroterion placed at th ...

Kent Bloomer Kent C. Bloomer is an American sculptor, professor and author who is a well known proponent and creator of architectural ornament. He has taught classes on ornament at the Yale School of Architecture for over forty years, and many of his public w ...

with owl figures by Raymond Kaskey. The acroterium on the State Street side depicts an

owl Owls are birds from the order Strigiformes (), which includes over 200 species of mostly solitary and nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vision, binaural hearing, sharp talons, and feathers a ...

, a symbol of knowledge due to its association with the Greek goddess

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

. The acroteria on the Congress Parkway (now Ida. B. Wells Drive) and on the Van Buren sides contain seed pods, which represent the natural bounty of the

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. ...

. The acroteria angularia each contain an owl perched in foliage. On the divide between the granite blocks and the brick portions are wall medallions that have the face of Ceres and ears of corn. On the north, east and south sides of the build are five story tall arched windows. Between the windows are rope friezes.

Interior

All public doors lead to the lobby. The north public entrance on Van Buren is just east of the

CTA CTA may refer to: Legislation *Children's Television Act, American legislation passed in 1990 that enforces a certain degree of educational television *Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 *Criminal Tribes Act, British legislation in India passed in 1871 wh ...

's Harold Washington Library-State/Van Buren station, served by the

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model use ...

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower * Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum ...

Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...

and Purple Lines. The corridor goes east, then south, then west, and opens south to the lobby. Lobby Harold Washington Library

The east and south public entrances open directly to the lobby. The west public entrance opens to the offices. The west corridor goes east then south to open at the lobby. *The lower level houses the Cindy Pritzker Auditorium, Multi-Purpose Room and Exhibit Hall. *The central lobby is two stories tall and includes both the circulation and information desks. On the east side, the Popular Library is housed and on the West side there is a YouMedia space for teens. *The second floor houses the Thomas Hughes Children’s library. *The third floor includes computers for public use, periodicals, and interlibrary loan and general information services departments along with a library makerspace. The Maker Lab includes multiple

3D printers 3D printing or additive manufacturing is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer ...

, CNC machines and Laser Cutters. Use of these machines is available for a nominal fee. *The fourth floor holds the business, general sciences, and technology items. *The fifth floor holds government publications, Chicago municipal references, maps, and a center for the blind, visually impaired and physically disabled. *The sixth floor holds social sciences and history resources. *The seventh floor holds literature and language resources as well as a work by acclaimed

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

sculptor Jerzy Kenar. *The eighth floor holds visual and performing arts resources, music practice rooms, and audio/visual rooms. *The ninth floor holds the Winter Garden, which may serve as a reading room or be rented for social functions. Also on this floor are exhibit halls, Special Collections, and the Harold Washington Archives and Collections. *The tenth floor is not open to the public. It houses library offices and technical services.

References

Notes

External links