Houston Public Library is the public library system serving Houston, Texas, United States.
History Houston Lyceum and the Carnegie Library
The Houston Public Library system traces its founding to the creation of the second Houston Lyceum in 1854. The lyceum was preceded by a debating society, a special-interest mechanics' lyceum, and a circulating library. The lyceum's library eventually split into a separate institution at the end of the 19th century.
In 1892, William Marsh Rice, a Houston businessman and philanthropist who later chartered Rice University, donated $200,000 for the construction of a free public library. The facility opened in 1895 and obtained its own building in 1904 with financial assistance from Andrew Carnegie.Chapman, Betty T. "Story of public libraries took long time to write in Houston." Houston Business Journal. June 2, 2000. Retrieved on January 27, 2009. Betty Trapp Chapman wrote in The Houston Review that the city's women "were instrumental" in the library's establishment and that the educated women "had long recognized the need for a library to serve the community." - Cited: p. 59 (PDF p. 1/4) Julia Ideson was named its first librarian and she hired one employee. Located at the corner of Travis and McKinney in what is now known as Downtown Houston, it originally housed 10,000 volumes. By 1907, 10,000 Houstonians held accounts at the library. By 1913, the library counted seven persons on its payroll.Chapman (2004), pp. 69. The city changed the name from Carnegie Library to Houston Public Library in 1921. By this time, they had outgrown their space and relocated several staff members to the Harris County Courthouse. A few years later, the library sold its property to raise money for a larger facility.Chapman (2004), pp. 1415.
Julia Ideson Library The library board selected a lot once occupied by Thomas M. Bagby, a co-founder of the 1848 Houston Lyceum. They commissioned Cram and Ferguson as design architects, in consultation with William Ward Watkin and Louis A. Glover. The building was completed in two years and at a cost of $500,000. The Spanish Renaissance design draws from regional history, and includes carvings of explorers and missionaries of Texas. The second floor hall lay under a rotunda, fronted by an interior oaken gate with carved columns and entablatures. The new building opened with a collection of more than thirty thousand volumes.Chapman (2004), pp. 2125. The building constructed as Houston's Central Library in 1926 was later named the Julia Ideson Building in her honor.
Carnegie Colored Library
The board for the Houston Carnegie Library had planned for universal access to the facilities. The Colored Carnegie Library of Houston opened in April 1913, with an African American board of trustees and management. It was transferred to the management as a branch library of Houston Public Library in 1921.
On July 31, 1961, the Carnegie Colored Library closed. The library facility required extensive repairs and it was in the path of the Clay Avenue extension project. The branch, auctioned in February 1962 and shortly afterward demolished except for the cornerstone, was replaced by the W. L. D. Johnson Library in Sunnyside, dedicated on June 16, 1964.
Expansion and branch libraries The library system racially desegregated in 1953. Alternative method: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/254956573_Cheryl_Knott_Malone_-_Unannounced_and_Unexpected_The_Desegregation_of_Houston_Public_Library_in_the_Early_1950s_-_Library_Trends_553, registration required. Beforehand, blacks were permitted use of the Colored Carnegie Branch and deposit stations located at a park, a high school, and an elementary school; whites were permitted use of the main library, six branches, two bookmobiles, and several deposit stations. Desegregation occurred after a letter printed in the Houston Informer from several prominent black Houstonians, including Smith v. Allwright plaintiff Lonnie E. Smith, stated they would prefer a voluntary desegregation program despite their likelihood of winning a lawsuit; shortly before the letter was printed, Sweatt v. Painter was decided by the U.S. Supreme Court, which challenged the "separate but equal" legal doctrine. In June 1953, Mayor of Houston Roy Hofheinz told the HPL board that library facilities should no longer be segregated. On August 21, 1953, library facilities for high school students and adults were desegregated – without public announcement to the black community.
The library system now consists of 35 neighborhood libraries, including four regional libraries, the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research in the Museum District, and the Central Library in Downtown. Central Library consists of the Julia Ideson Building and the Jesse H. Jones Building, constructed in 1976."In Memory of Mr. Seth Irvin Morris" (). Houston Public Library. August 2, 2006. Retrieved on January 27, 2009. Out-of-state users are entitled to access to the Library's resources, after paying a $40 annual fee.
The HPL administrative offices were moved out of the Jones Building, freeing of space. Lisa Gray, of the Houston Chronicle, said the renovation made the Jones Building "less of a public space devoted to reading, and more of a public space, period."Gray, Lisa. "Beyond books." Houston Chronicle. June 20, 2008. Retrieved on March 11, 2010. The offices moved to the Marston Building."It's Worth the Wait Exciting New Renovation for the Central Library" (). Houston Public Library. Thursday February 23, 2006. Retrieved on June 30, 2010. In 2012, the Marston Building was sold by the City of Houston, and the HPL administrative office moved to the recently restored Julia Ideson Building while other staff offices moved back to the Jones Building.
Additions in the 2000s include McGovern-Stella Link Neighborhood Library (2005), HPL Express Southwest (2008),"HPL Express Southwest Grand Opening ." Houston Public Library. January 1, 2008. Retrieved on December 13, 2008. and HPL Express Discovery Green (2008)."Take to the air for short trips from Tucson ." Arizona Daily Star. June 19, 2008. Retrieved on January 27, 2009. A new building for Looscan Neighborhood Library opened in 2007, replacing a 1956 structure."Adele B. Looscan Branch Replacement," () Houston Public Library. Retrieved May 23, 2008.
The Jones Building closed for renovations in 2006 and reopened in 2008."Central Library Grand Re-Opening Celebration May 31 & June 1, 2008" (Archive). Houston Public Library. Retrieved on January 27, 2009. That same year, the Houston Press heralded the project as Houston's best renovation in its annual awards."Best Renovation (2008) Downtown Library" (Archive). Houston Press. Retrieved on September 28, 2015.
In 2010, due to a budget shortfall, the library system reduced its hours.Turner, Allan. "Budget forcing cuts in library hours." Houston Chronicle. April 7, 2010. Retrieved on April 7, 2010. During the same year the system put its decades-old city directories online.Gonzalez, J.R. "Houston Public Library puts decades-old directories online." Houston Chronicle. April 13, 2010. Retrieved on May 11, 2010.
Locations
Headquarters During the Jesse H. Jones Building remodeling the HPL administrative offices moved to the Marston Building in Neartown Houston.Map of Neartown . Neartown Association. Retrieved October 20, 2008."GSD District Locations." City of Houston. Retrieved on June 30, 2010. "No. 117. Location Code MAR. Address 820 Marston. Location Name Marston Building. Zip Code 77019. Key Map 492M. Sq. Ft 22,000. The City of Houston spent $1.3 million to renovate the Marston Building to accommodate HPL staff. Prior to the remodeling, the HPL administrative offices were located in the Jones Building."City of Houston Public Library, Marston Building ." Prozign Architects. Retrieved on June 30, 2010. In 2012 HPL administrative offices moved to the Julia Ideson Building after its historically correct renovation and the addition of a wing which was in the original design, but was not built at the time due to lack of funds. This addition houses the Houston Metropolitan Research Center (HMRC) which is the archival center of the Houston Public Library System. The Marston Building was sold in 2012 by the City of Houston.
Neighborhood libraries
In addition to the Central Library and Clayton Library, there are 32 neighborhood libraries, including five regional libraries, all located within the city of Houston.Houston Public Library – Named Buildings
J. S. Bracewell Neighborhood Library (Southbelt/Ellington) Carnegie Neighborhood Library (Near Northside) Everett Collier Regional Library (Northwest Houston) Patricio Flores Neighborhood Library (Second Ward) Eleanor K. Freed-Montrose Neighborhood Library (Neartown) Eleanor K. Freed-Montrose Neighborhood Library was at 4100 Montrose Boulevard."Freed-Montrose Neighborhood Library ." Houston Public Library. Retrieved on December 11, 2008. The library was housed in a former church, the Central Church of Christ. The bell tower or campanile is located by the front door of the library although the bell is gone, and there is a small colonnade connecting the main church-library building to former church meeting rooms and offices. Facing Montrose Boulevard, the original stained glass window of the church can be seen featuring a dove with an olive branch in its beak. A modern office building complex in the surrounding area is known as The Campanile, named after the bell tower in the library. In 2013 there were plans for a renovation. However, they were shelved upon consideration of the cost of upgrading the building's infrastructure. Instead, as of 2019, the city is moving forward with plans for a new library facility along Westheimer Road. The facility will be in the multi-purpose Montrose Collective development which will also have retail. In March 2024, the library system closed the church-based Freed-Montrose, stating that concerns about safety were the reason for the closure. The new Freed-Montrose Library opened on December 14, 2024. Heights Neighborhood Library (Houston Heights) David M. Henington-Alief Regional Library (Alief) Arnold L. Hillendahl Neighborhood Library (Spring Branch) W. L. D. Johnson Neighborhood Library (Sunnyside) J. Frank Jungman Neighborhood Library (Uptown) Belle Sherman Kendall Neighborhood Library (Memorial)