Davenport Library

Davenport Public Library

Main Branch designed by Edward Durell Stone
Country	United States
Type	Public
Established	1877
Location	321 N. Main St. 3000 N. Fairmount St. 6000 Eastern Ave. Davenport, Iowa
Coordinates	41°31′23.52″N 90°34′30.72″W / 41.5232000°N 90.5752000°W / 41.5232000; -90.5752000
Collection
Size	372,826
Access and use
Circulation	946,114 (2011)
Other information
Director	KennethWayne Thompson
Website	www.davenportlibrary.com
References:

The Davenport Public Library is a public library located in Davenport, Iowa. With a history dating back to 1839, the Davenport Public Library's Main Library is currently housed in a 1960s building designed by Kennedy Center architect Edward Durell Stone. The Davenport Public Library system is made up of three libraries—the Main Library at 321 Main Street; the Fairmount Branch Library at 3000 N. Fairmount Street; and the Eastern Avenue Branch Library at 6000 Eastern Avenue.

The library began with a reading room in the Le Claire Hotel established in 1839. Another reading room and circulating library were announced in an 1853 article in the Davenport Gazette. The library eventually leased an entire building. Although then named the Young Men's Library Association, it was managed by the community's women. In 1877, one of them—Clarissa Cook—pledged $10,000 to the library for the construction of its own building if property were obtained for the construction by the citizens. After successfully raising the funds to purchase a lot, the city laid the cornerstone for the Cook Memorial Building on November 7, 1877.

The library eventually outgrew its space. Even though the Library Association no longer had to pay rent and charged a fee for borrowing books, it was struggling financially and could not resolve the issue itself. Local author Alice French requested the assistance of her personal friend Andrew Carnegie, who was already becoming known for his philanthropic assistance of libraries. Carnegie promised to donate $50,000 to construct a new public library if the library were tax supported. The question was successfully put to the vote at the April 1900 election, the first in Iowa which permitted women voters. The city opened its Carnegie library, the largest west of the Mississippi River in 1904, with $75,000.00 in funds donated by Carnegie. The building was designed by Boston architect Calvin Kiessling. The library's first director in the new Carnegie building was Marilla Waite Freeman.