Carnegie Library
Located in Mt. Vernon Square, a reservation on Pierre L’Enfant’s 1791 Plan for the City of Washington, the Carnegie Library was the gift of philanthropist Andrew Carnegie to the nation’s capital. The building was designed by the New York architectural firm of Ackerman & Ross in the Beaux Arts style and was dedicated on June 7, 1903, in the presence of President Theodore Roosevelt. In his remarks that day, Mr. Carnegie indicated that the building was open to all no matter of race. For the next 70 years, the building served as the city’s central library until it outgrew its space and moved to the new Martin Luther King, Jr. Library at 9th and G Streets, NW.
The old Carnegie Library was then used by the University of the District of Columbia for several years but sat vacant after the University moved out. In the early 2000’s the Historical Society of Washington, DC leased the building for its new home and for a new City Museum which it operated on the first floor. The City Museum closed in 2004, but the Historical Society remained on the second floor.
During 2017 the National Capital Planning Commission adopted plans for a public-private partnership that envisioned a much needed renovation of the building and the opening of an Apple flagship store on the first floor. The Historical Society remains on the second floor. The Committee of 100 attended consultation meetings and offered supportive comments as the implementation of the plans proceeded. The exterior and the interior of the building have now been restored; and the landscaping of the grounds completed. The building with its Apple store opened for business on May 11, 2019.
Documents
C100 Report On Rehabilitation Of Carnegie Library- October 16, 2017, Richard Busch
The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) met on October 5 for its regular monthly meeting where the Commissioners unanimously approved restoration, rehabilitation, and renovation plans for the historic Carnegie Library following reviews by all appropriate federal and local government agencies and outside organizations called for under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA) and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1970 (NEPA). According to NCPC, the US Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) is expected to approve the project at its monthly meeting on October 19. The project is on the CFA’s Consent Calendar.
- Carnegie Library Memorandum Of Agreement
- October 10, 2017,
Agreement among the National Capital Planning Commission, various DC agencies and organizations and Apple governing responsibilities for the rehabilitation and occupancy of the Carnegie Library. - C100 Comments NEPA Scoping Meeting Carnegie Library
- May 26, 2017, Stephen A. Hansen
As a follow-up to the National Environmental Policy Act Scoping Meeting on the Carnegie Library held by your commission on May 9, the Committee of 100 on the Federal City (C100) has the following preliminary comments. Several of these points were raised briefly at that meeting with Ms. Elizabeth Edelsen Estes, a representative of your consultant Stantec.
