Civic Pride in a Lost America: Library Postcards
Carnegie Libraries of Colorado
Cities L-Z
Lamar
(L) Unattributed card, printed in Germany.
(R) H. Gerstenlauer card, printed in Belgium.
Carnegie grant, 1906; Building built, 1908. Demolished in 1975.
Leadville
1901 grant. This rather spectacularly sited building was in use until 1971. It didn't slide off the hill, for now it's the Leadville Heritage Museum.
The rather painterly postcard bears no attribution.
Littleton
Now the Bemis Public Library. Actually, to be pedantic, the building's a restaurant now.
The Carnegie building resembled a railroad station, which is interesting because a grant from the Santa Fe railroad began the library collection in 1892. The Carnegie library opened in 1917 and was replaced in 1962.
The photo post card also captures a bent light pole.
Longmont
Late 1907 grant. Finished in 1913, which seems to be an inordinate amount of time. It has been replaced: By 2009, digitized directories give a different street address than the Carnegie building.
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The Albertype postcard was mailed in 1916, and bears album marks.
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Loveland
(L) Another sepia tinted Williamson-Haffner card.
(R) Curt Teich Doubletone card. This uncommon postcard line seems to have been competitive with the beautiful Rotograph cards.
1907 grant. Demolished in 1964.
A remarkably plain building configured for its corner lot, this may have been organized with the uncommon fan stack configuration.
Manitou Springs
Built 1910: still in use, essentially as is.
Good timelime, post-merge into the Pikes Peak Library District. Did you know that Manitou Springs branch is also known for its doll collection?
Very attractive H.H.T. Co. card.
Pueblo (McClelland Public Library)
1902 grant: demolished in the mid 1960s.
(L) Curt Teich postcard, mailed 1921.
(R) Annotated, but never mailed. In the lower left of the card, there is a lawn sprinkler. I don't doubt its necessity in Pueblo, but am surprised at its early adoption.
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Rocky Ford
(L) Photo postcard, no further identification.
(R) The postcard probably was published by C.U. Williams of Bloomington, IL. Notice the fallen leaves, and the retouched buds. One would think that there would have to have been better publishers in Colorado.
1907 grant.
Replaced fairly recently, and converted to a museum.
Salida
1905 grant; completed in 1909. Doesn't this look like the Colorado Springs postcard? It was a pleasant surprise to recognize that this wasn't the same library.
Again, it's another H-H-T Co. postcard.
Sterling
1915 Carnegie grant. Designed by William Cowe, the building took a fair amount of time to complete, opening in 1918. It has been replaced, but its status on the National Register of Historic Places has saved it. For a brief period, it was a B&B.
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I have no attribution for this photo postcard.
Trinidad
1903 grant.
Still in use, with a 1995 addition for a history room.
The card was produced for the S.H. Kress chain, often confused with S.S. Kresge, the dime store that morphed into KMart.
