Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
| Elmer Holmes Bobst Library | |
|---|---|
The south facade of the Bobst Library, along West 3rd Street
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| General information | |
| Type | Library |
| Address | 70 Washington Square South |
| Town or city | New York City (Greenwich Village, Manhattan), New York 10012 |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 40°43′46″N 73°59′50″W / 40.72944°N 73.99722°WCoordinates: 40°43′46″N 73°59′50″W / 40.72944°N 73.99722°W |
| Completed | September 12, 1973 |
| Opened | September 12, 1973 |
| Owner | New York University |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 12 |
| Floor area | 425,000 square feet (39,500 m2) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Philip Johnson and Richard Foster |
| Collection | |
| Size | 3.3 million volumes, 20,000 journals, and over 3.5 million microforms |
| Access and use | |
| Circulation | Almost one million books annually |
The Elmer Holmes Bobst Library, often referred to as simply Bobst Library or Bobst, is the main library at New York University in Manhattan, New York City. The library is located at 70 Washington Square South between LaGuardia Place and the Schwartz pedestrian plaza, across from the southeast corner of Washington Square Park. Opened on September 12, 1973, Bobst Library is named after its benefactor, Elmer Holmes Bobst who gave US$11.5 million toward its completion. Bobst – a philanthropist who made his money in the pharmaceutical industry, and a confidant of U.S. President Richard Nixon – was a long-time trustee at New York University.
The library, built in 1972, is the university's largest library and one of the largest academic libraries in the U.S. Designed by Philip Johnson and Richard Foster, the 12-story, 425,000 square feet (39,500 m2) structure is the flagship of an eleven-library, 5.9 million-volume system. It houses more than 3.3 million volumes, 20,000 journals, and over 3.5 million microforms; and provides access to thousands of electronic resources in the forms of licensed databases, e-journals, and other formats both on-site and to the university community around the world via the Internet. The library is visited by more than 6,500 users per day, and circulates almost one million books annually.
Gifts from Mamdouha S. Bobst and Kevin Brine made possible a significant renovation of Bobst Library's Mezzanine, First Floor and two Lower Levels which was completed in 2005. The library provided text computer terminals for catalog search in the library until the terminals were replaced by PCs with Internet access in 2008.
The library houses several distinct special collections departments, including the Fales Library, the Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Archives, and the University Archives of NYU. On the north side, on even floors, are large, double-height study rooms featuring floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Washington Square Park.
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