The Lithgow Public Library is the public library of Augusta, Maine

Augusta, Maine

Augusta is the capital of the US state of Maine, county seat of Kennebec County, and center of population for Maine. The city's population was 19,136 at the 2010 census, making it the third-smallest state capital after Montpelier, Vermont and Pierre, South Dakota...

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History

The library is named for Llewellyn Lithgow, an Augusta merchant

Merchant

A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...

, who left a $20,000 bequest

Bequest

A bequest is the act of giving property by will. Strictly, "bequest" is used of personal property, and "devise" of real property. In legal terminology, "bequeath" is a verb form meaning "to make a bequest."...

 to the City of Augusta for the purpose of building a public library

Public library

A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...

. The bequest, along with a $9,000 gift from Andrew Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...

 and the sale of subscriptions

Subscription business model

The subscription business model is a business model where a customer must pay a subscription price to have access to the product/service. The model was pioneered by magazines and newspapers, but is now used by many businesses and websites....

 to local citizens, provided the funds to construct the building. The cornerstone of the library was laid in 1894, and the doors opened to the community in February of 1896. The library was added to the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 in 1974.

Design

Designed in the Romanesque Renaissance

Romanesque Revival architecture

Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...

 style, the library is constructed of gray Norridgewock granite

Granite

Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...

, blocked symmetrically over the windows and entrance. An arched doorway and medallions featuring the names of admired writers adorn the exterior. The interior lobby and original stack room feature quartered oak pillars and elaborate woodwork. Grand fireplaces on the east and west walls face each other. Stained glass

Stained glass

The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...

 windows depict printers' marks from the 15th and 16th centuries, as well as several scenes from Augusta history. The Reading Room, with its frescoes, stained glass and gold leaf ornamentation, remains much the same as it was in the 1890s

1890s

The 1890s were sometimes referred to as the "Mauve Decade" - because William Henry Perkin's aniline dye allowed the widespread use of that colour in fashion - and also as the "Gay Nineties", under the then-current usage of the word "gay" which referred simply to merriment and frivolity, with no...

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Expansion

An addition to the original building was constructed in 1979.
The Friends of Lithgow Library regularly conduct capital campaigns

Fundraising

Fundraising or fund raising is the process of soliciting and gathering voluntary contributions as money or other resources, by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies...

 to raise funds for a 21st century

21st century

The 21st century is the current century of the Anno Domini era or the Common Era in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. The century began on January 1, 2001 and will end on December 31, 2100. The years from 2001 to 2010 are historical; the years from 2011 to 2100 are subject to futurology and...

 expansion and renovation

Renovation

Renovation is the process of improving a structure. Two prominent types of renovations are commercial and residential.-Process:The process of a renovation, however complex, can usually be broken down into several processes...

. The proposed project has an estimated cost of $8.1 million, and will be a Public–private partnership between the city of Augusta and the Friends

Friends of Libraries

Friends of Libraries USA are non-profit charitable, groups formed to support libraries in their communities. Friends of Libraries groups are often involved in fundraising, advocacy, volunteerism,public awareness campaigns, and literacy programs.-See also:...

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External links

• http://www.lithgow.lib.me.us/ - official website
• http://www.augustamaine.gov/ - City of Augusta