



Produced by Carla Foust, and The Online Distributed
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Transcriber's note


Minor punctuation errors have been changed without notice.




[Illustration: CENTRAL BUILDING

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY]




   HANDBOOK

   _of_

   THE NEW YORK PUBLIC
   LIBRARY

   1916




   Copyright, 1916, by
   THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY




CONTENTS


   THE CENTRAL BUILDING:                        PAGE

     EXTERIOR                                      7

     SCULPTURE                                    13

     THE REAR OF THE BUILDING                     15


   FIRST FLOOR

     ENTRANCES                                    17

     ELEVATORS                                    19

     EXHIBITION ROOM                              19

     CURRENT PERIODICALS ROOM                     19

     BUSINESS OFFICES                             21

     TECHNOLOGY DIVISION                          21

     PATENTS ROOM                                 22

     THE LIBRARY FOR THE BLIND                    22


   SECOND FLOOR

     ORIENTAL DIVISION                            23

     JEWISH DIVISION                              23

     SLAVONIC DIVISION                            23

     SCIENCE DIVISION                             25

     ECONOMICS DIVISION                           25

     BUSINESS OFFICES                             25


   THIRD FLOOR

     PUBLIC CATALOGUE ROOM                        27

     INFORMATION DESK                             31

     APPLICATION FOR BOOKS                        31

     THE MAIN READING ROOM                        31

     THE LIBRARY'S BOOKS                          33

     USE OF BOOKS                                 39

     STACK                                        39

     GENEALOGY ROOM                               39

     AMERICAN HISTORY DIVISION                    39

     RESERVE BOOKS                                41

     PRINTS ROOM                                  43

     ART AND ARCHITECTURE                         43

     MAP ROOM                                     45

     STUART GALLERY                               45

     GENERAL GALLERY                              45

     PRINTS GALLERY                               45

     MANUSCRIPT DIVISION                          46

     MUSIC DIVISION                               47


   BASEMENT

     NEWSPAPER ROOM                               47

     CENTRAL CIRCULATION BRANCH                   49

     CHILDREN'S ROOM                              51

     LIBRARY SCHOOL                               51

     PUBLIC TELEPHONES                            53

     BUSINESS OFFICES                             53

     TRAVELLING LIBRARIES OFFICE                  53


   CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT (BRANCHES):

     CIRCULATION OF BOOKS                         55

     SPECIAL COLLECTIONS                          57

     INTERBRANCH LOAN                             57

     READING ROOMS                                57

     LIBRARY FOR THE BLIND                        59

     TRAVELLING LIBRARIES                         59

     WORK WITH CHILDREN                           61

     LECTURES AND MEETINGS                        62


   HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE LIBRARY:

     THE ASTOR LIBRARY                            63

     THE LENOX LIBRARY                            67

     THE TILDEN TRUST                             67

     CONSOLIDATION                                69

     NEW YORK FREE CIRCULATING LIBRARY            71

     OTHER CIRCULATING LIBRARIES                  71

     CARNEGIE BRANCHES                            71

     MANAGEMENT                                   71

     BENEFACTORS                                  72

     WORK OF THE LIBRARY                          73


   FLOOR PLANS, CENTRAL BUILDING                  74

   TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS OF THE LIBRARY           76

   DIRECTORY OF BRANCH LIBRARIES                  77

   PUBLICATIONS OF THE LIBRARY                    78

   THE CROTON RESERVOIR                           79




_NOTE_


_Although the purpose of this Handbook is to tell the principal facts
about the Library as an institution, its chief use is likely to be that
of a guide to the Central Building. The section about the Central
Building is therefore given first place. Any visitor who cares to take
the trouble, before beginning his tour of the Building, to read the
brief historical sketch (on pages 63-73) will have a better
understanding of the organization and work of the Library, and see the
reasons for a number of things which might not otherwise be clear._




THE CENTRAL BUILDING


OPEN: WEEK DAYS, INCLUDING HOLIDAYS, 9 A.M. TO 10 P.M. SUNDAYS, 1 P.M.
TO 10 P.M.

(Except where otherwise noted these are the hours of the special reading
rooms.)




THE CENTRAL BUILDING


=The Central Building= of The New York Public Library is on the western
side of Fifth Avenue, occupying the two blocks between 40th and 42nd
Streets. It stands on part of the site of the old Croton distributing
reservoir, and it was built by the City of New York at a cost of about
nine million dollars.

Competitions to choose the architect for the building were held in 1897,
two years after The New York Public Library was incorporated. The result
of the competition was the selection of Messrs. Carrere and Hastings, of
New York, as architects. In 1899 the work of removing the old reservoir
began. Various legal difficulties and labor troubles delayed beginning
the construction