When was the nypl built

The philanthropist James Lennox who had been a huge collector of books, had established the Lennox Library. The library had consisted mostly of books from his private collection. James Lennox was a the son of Robert Lennox who was a Scottish merchant who left his son James a million dollar fortune.

James Lennox passed the bar exam but never practiced law. His life was dedicated to collecting rare books. The rare collection would eventually be merged with the New York Public Library. The Croton Reservoir was an above ground reservoir surrounded by concrete walls similar to the Oval Park Reservoir in the Bronx.

The Croton Reservoir was located at 42 street and Fifth Avenue. John Shaw Billings. The design by Dr. John Shaw Billings called for a massive library filled with seven floors of stacks. The plans by Dr. John Shaw Billings was to also install a dumbwaiter system. While most dumbwaiter systems in city apartment buildings were designed for garbage disposal, the dumbwaiter system in The New York Public Library was a brilliant method of transporting books to the circulation desk quickly from the stacks.

Like all famous buildings in New York City, various architectural firms bid on the opportunity to build the library. The style was based in French Neoclassicism utilizing modern materials. Elements of gothic and Renaissance art was also used in the plans. It took almost 16 years for The New York Library to be built. The Croton Reservoir had to be dismantled and the land made safe for building. The heavy marble and complex design of the library took many years of manpower and money to succeed. The interior of the library is mesmerizing and the body of resources that the New York Library holds is world class in every distinction.

Through the front doors visitors find themselves standing in the center of the great Astor Hall. There is a majestic feeling one gets standing in the Astor Hall. The great staircase that lines the north and south sides of the room is breathtaking. The marble floors and walls are stunning. The lighting is dim as the hall is surrounded by low lit beautiful floor candelabras.

One aspect that never gets written about in describing The New York Public Library is the hallways that connect the various departments. The halls that have been made out of marble stand quiet in passage, echoing all the brilliant minds of those who have passed them. The hopes of those yearning to learn, live, read and breath in all the possibilities of what life has to offer seem to still resonate in those stone halls.

The room runs the length of a football field. Long wooden tables line both sides of the room in rows. Eighteen beautiful chandeliers hang from the ceilings illuminating the room with a light that is easy on the eyes yet plentiful for reading.

Large windows overlook the reading room. There are murals painted on the ceiling although many have faded over the years. Schwarzman Building hosts multiple reading rooms all with their own style and feel.

Schwarzman Building was an ode to the technology of the past still being used in the present. In this world of cell phones, we found a pair of old phone booths.

We are not talking the metal phone booths of the s through s. The phone booths still had the stools in them. However the doors had been removed. In the old days, phone booths like those had doors that turned on a light in the booth when closed. It was nice to be able to make a phone call in a quite booth in a private setting. Those days are gone. The New York Public Library has many different rooms housing special collections and exhibits.

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