Civic Pride in a Lost America: Library Postcards
Carnegie Libraries of Ohio
Cities D-K
Dayton
The flanking images are of the Dayton East 5th and Dayton West 5th branch libraries. I don't know if the publisher was logical and put the West at left, and East at right.
Anyway, West burnt in 1979. It had the earlier grant of the two: 1902. East had a 1911 grant. The center building predated the Carnegie program.
Defiance
1903 grant: still in use after a recent renovation.
(L) Early card mailed in 1908: stamp is canceled via pencil and date.
(R) Tinted card, probably off the same original photograph.
Delaware
(L) F.T. Evans postcard. May have been printed by Tom Jones.
(R) Handcolored card mailed in 1908.
The Carnegie building now houses the Delaware County Commissioners, per a Columbus Dispatch article which also furnishes a 1926 photo of the Carnegie building.
Apparently the Delaware County District Library replaced the 1904 Carnegie building. The new building was remodeled by Triad Architects (page no longer online) in 2004. Where do they get their money?
Oh, I think I can answer this.
There is now a room dedicated to the history of harness racing.
Delphos
1911 grant: remodeled in 1960 and 2006. Still in use.
(L) 1959 card predates the first renovation, but shows the park and the library.
(R) Wm. A Wagner card shows a frontal view of the building. Its plate number indicates that it was printed by Curt Teich.
East Liverpool
Souvenir of East Liverpool, Ohio. The glitter spells it out for you.
1952 linen finish card by Curt Teich, sold by the Rogers News Agency.
Luster-Chrome card makes the library and its surroundings look quite Italianate.
1899 grant, building finished in 1902. This was the third East Liverpool library building. Some renovation has taken place since.
Fostoria
The city of Fostoria is known as one of the midwest's glass cities.
Real photo 'KRUXO' postcard, mailed in 1915.
There is a big black blur, vaguely shaped like a dog, around the side walkway. Train tracks run up the brick street. Other artifacts point to this being an amateur photograph.
Still in use, with a 1968 and a 1989 addition. I don't know about the 'Mc Clean' drinking fountain.
(L) Mc Clean Drinking Fountain and Public Library.
I smile when I see 'Mc Clean drinking fountain.' I don't know from when that dates, but the library building dates from a 1903 Carnegie grant. The attractive linen-finish card was mailed in 1949.
(R) Marchion Studio photo used on a Curt Teich card.
Galion
Did you know that the library began in a log cabin?
The Carnegie grant came in 1904. Expansion of the lovely Carnegie building came in 1991.
(L) Early (ca. 1906) monochrome card.
(R) Postcard scan courtesy of the Galion Public Library.
Galliopolis
Built in 1905. Replaced in 1978. Now serves as the Gallipolis City School District Administration Building.
Rotograph card bears an entire back, therefore, was published within two years of construction.
Germantown
1904 Carnegie grant, per Bobinski. Waymarking gives its date as 1907. Replaced in 1984.
The building houses the Historical Society of Germantown today.
C.E. Smith card was mailed in 1908.
Greenville
There are several totally different postcard treatments of this 1901 building.
(L) Unknown publisher.
(R) Undated Rotograph card. There is also an uncolored version extant.
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1901 grant. Its precursor was the 1889 Free School Library. This building was recently renovated. It's huge!
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Kent
1901 grant, with a 1903 grant for furnishings. Built in 1902 by A.C. Stambaugh. The building, now called the Carnegie section, contains a genealogy room, the Keller Room, and a quiet reading room.
(L) Vignette-style card, mailed in 1908.
(R) German 'Blue sky' type card, mailed in 1909. The library windows look strangely blank.
Kenton
1902 grant; Richards, McCarty and Bulford were its architects. Opened 1905. Renamed 'Hardin County District Library' in 1936. Replacement building dedicated 1969. Renamed 'Mary Lou Johnson - Hardin County District Library' in 1977.
Building now used by Kenton Dental Care, per Shari Laster.
(L) Huntzinger Photo postcard. It sold for 5 cents.
(R) Chrome postcard mentions bookmobile service. The card dates to the early 1960s.
Kinsman
1911 grant. Lot obtained, 1913, which is unusual in that normally the site needed to be procured before the grant was made. The Library is still in use.
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The postcard was from Eastern Illustrating Co. in Belfast, ME. It is unusually western for the company.