Patience and Fortitude: The New York Public Library

The entrance to the Stephan H. Schwarzman building

“This has got to be the largest tour I’ve done in over ten years,” said a tour guide, walking in front of a throng of people in The New York Public Library. She began in the lobby, or Astor Hall, “This is the Stephen H. Scharzman building,” she said, after a man who made large donations to the library.

The Schwarzman building is known as the main branch, located on Fifth Avenue and 42^nd Street. It is only one part of The New York Public Library, which is comprised of four research libraries and 87 branches in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island. 

Plans for the Stephen H. Schwarzman building began in 1895. It took 16 years to design and build, and cost a total of nine million dollars to create. “The building is virtually irreplaceable,” said the tour guide, explaining that nine million then would be equivalent to hundreds of millions today. It is widely recognized as a landmark building, even seen in a number of popular movies. Lions outside the entrance are a distinguishing part of the design; one is for patience, the other fortitude.

Astor Hall, directly inside the building

The foundation of the building is on the Croton Reservoir, which was no longer needed when plans for the library were set in motion. The two-block area was decided as a central location, and stone from the reservoir that was unable to be removed or altered can still be seen as part of the foundation. By standing at the edge of a railing, those on the tour were instructed to look down. With quick fascination, fingers pointed to where marble ended and the remains of the Croton Reservoir began. Long ago, the water was called “Croton Champagne.”

As more people joined the tour, attention was put on the marble structure of the building. “Look around,” said the tour guide, “look at what you see, it is all marble.” The building was made using 530,000 cubic feet of marble, with exterior marble facing 12 inches thick. The ceilings are made from plaster, carved and molded to look like solid wood. Architectural design focused on classical style, with Greek and Roman influences. Stopping in the middle of a hallway, one tourist touched the cool marble walls.

The Reading Room

The collection at the Schwarzman building is also impressive in its comprehensiveness. The second and third floors hold the special collections in addition to the well-known reading room. The building houses Charles Dickens’ modest desk and chair as well as materials from Virginia Wolf’s estate, and the Gutenberg Bible. A circulating children’s section in the lower level also holds the original Winnie the Pooh dolls. The library’s map division is one of the top ten in the world.

Overall, the library is one of the top five in the world and second in the United States. It is completely free and open to the public, although the Schwarzman building is a non-circulating research library. The reading room was the next and final stop, a vast room with tables lined in rows for those doing work. The size of a football field, there is space for 800 readers in this popular Reading Room. The tour guide remained silent once inside, allowing tourists to marvel at the expansiveness of the room.

As the tour came to a close, the remaining crowd made it clear that there was still much to explore. The tour guide rattled off what was passed but not really seen, stopping to allow the group to break and wander off. “You still have things to see,” she said, one more history lesson completed.