The Caldwell Public Library Building Will Soon Be History | Caldwell, New Jersey

The Caldwell Public Library Is A Carnegie Library

Carnegie Libraries were funded by the great philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.

According to The National Park Service:

Many Americans first entered the worlds of information and imagination offered by reading when they walked through the front doors of a Carnegie library. One of 19th-century industrialist Andrew Carnegie’s many philanthropies, these libraries entertained and educated millions. Between 1886 and 1919, Carnegie’s donations of more than $40 million paid for 1,679 new library buildings in communities large and small across America. Many still serve as civic centers, continuing in their original roles or fulfilling new ones as museums, offices, or restaurants.

Caldwell Establishes A Library

In Caldwell, New Jersey, various libraries and reading rooms were tried out. It became apparent that the town needed a permanent solution.

According to the Caldwell Library website:

On June 8, 1908 a letter from the Carnegie Library Foundation offered a sum of Seven Thousand Five Hundred Dollars to construct a library. To meet the grant’s specifications, the town was required to provide an appropriate lot, plus Seven Hundred and Fifty Dollars or 10% of the grant annually to sustain the library.

Several years passed by, with continual wrangling over the new building.

The Library website continues:

Commissioner Lockward, the Architect, submitted his plans to the Borough Council and the Municipal Art Commission and they were accepted. His plans were to construct a one-story brick structure of forty-eight feet and a depth of twenty feet, enhanced with terra cotta trimmings. It would have a tile roof and basement, containing the furnace room, coal bunkers, etc., and a conference room.

The Library Finally Opens

According to the Library website:

On October 12, 1917, the Caldwell Library was formally dedicated during appropriate exercises. Mayor Peck, who was President of the Library Trustees was in charge of the ceremonies.

The Caldwell Library is scheduled to be demolished soon, so I wanted to take some photographs to remember it. I have spent many hours in this little Library, and I will miss it. You can find out WHY this historic little building is being demolished after some photos. Scroll down for more!

10 Most Endangered Historic Places

In 2022, Preservation New Jersey listed the Caldwell Library as one of the most endangered sites in New Jersey:

The Borough is planning to demolish the Caldwell Public Library and redevelop the area as part of a Municipal Complex to include Borough Hall, the police department, a community center, and a health and human services facility. It is special for a town to have a Carnegie Library. The Library and its ability to tell the story of Caldwell and the legacy of Andrew Carnegie to future generations is irreplaceable. The building can be adaptively reused or at minimum the facade can be preserved and incorporated into the plans for the new building. Preservation New Jersey urges the Borough of Caldwell to reconsider their plans for demolition and adopt a policy of adaptive reuse for this landmark building.

A Terrible Flood

While I tremendously respect what Preservation New Jersey does, there are some very real reasons why the Library building will be demolished.

In 2021 a truly terrible storm flooded the Library and caused a great deal of damage. In the back of the Library where the Children’s section was located, the damage from the flooding was severe. Many books and precious historic documents were damaged.

You can check out a video and other information:

Hundreds of books ruined after Ida causes extensive damage at New Jersey Library

To give you an idea of the power of the storm, check out these videos: