For other Carnegie Libraries, see Carnegie library (disambiguation)
Old Tampa Free Public Library | |
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   | |
| Location | 102 E. Seventh Ave., Tampa, Florida |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 27°57′37″N 82°27′38″W / 27.96028°N 82.46056°W |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Architect | Fred J. James; Aulick, Bates & Hundall |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 91000618[1] |
| Added to NRHP | May 16, 1991 |
The Old Tampa Free Public Library (also known as the Exceptional Children Education Center) is a historic building in the Tampa Heights neighborhood of Tampa, Florida. Located at 102 E. 7th Avenue, it was one of 10 Florida Carnegie libraries to receive grants awarded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York from 1901 to 1917.[2] It was designed by Tampa architect Fred J. James and constructed from 1915 to 1917. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.
Steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie provided funding for more than 3,000 Carnegie libraries in the United States, Canada, and Europe.[3] The library was built using a $50,000 grant from Carnegie. The library's first director was Helen V. Stelle.
It was Tampa's main library until 1968. It includes a T-plan, masonry, brown and yellow brick atop a rusticated granite basement, and is topped by a barrel tile roof. The building was rehabilitated in 1999 by the City of Tampa for public offices.[4] It has been occupied by the administrative staff of the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System since November 2016[5] and also houses the Hillsborough Literacy Council, which is affiliated with the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library system.[6]
- ^ "National Register Information System – (#91000618)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ Tampa Bay Business Journal.
- ^ Bobinski, George (1969). Carnegie Libraries: Their History and Impact on American Public Library Development. American Library Association. ISBN 0-8389-0022-4.
- ^ "Tampa Free Public Library". Retrieved 11 October 2013.
- ^ "Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn eyeing changes at site of downtown library annex".
- ^ "Hillsborough Literacy Council – Teaching adults to read and speak English".