Open Collections

[Bookplate for Carnegie Library of Ottawa]

There are two solid, black line borders around the text. The bookplate is printed in black ink, and the words 'Carnegie Library of Ottawa' are printed in red ink in a Gothic script. Two thin black lines separate the words 'Carnegie Library of Ottawa' from the 'library rules' text.

Libraries

Carnegie Library of Ottawa

Still Image

The Carnegie Library of Ottawa (later known as the Ottawa Public Library) was completed in 1905, and was personally opened by Mr. Andrew Carnegie on April 30, 1906. The library holds the distinction of being the only institution in Ontario to be opened by Carnegie himself. Ottawa lacked any sort of free library system until the turn of the twentieth century, when the Local Council of Women wrote to Carnegie in 1901 to request funding for a public library. Carnegie provided $100,000, with the proviso that the City of Ottawa provide an annual contribution of $7500. The library immediately proved popular, and the building was forced to stay open several hours past the scheduled closing time on the first day in order to accommodate the throngs of readers who gathered outside its doors. By the end of the day, the shelves were in chaos, and several items had already gone missing. The 1923 Ottawa city directory described the library as 'afford[ing] the student a delightful retreat.' The building originally stood at Laurier Avenue West and Metcalfe Street, but was demolished in 1970 to make way for a larger, more modern building. Several of the architectural features, such as the stained glass and Corinthian columns, have been preserved, either in the modern building or in a nearby park.
References:
1) Bytown Museum. Ottawa Public Library. 2009. Accessed October 21, 2014. http://capitalneighbourhoods.ca/english/downtown/story-254.aspx
2) Celsus: A Library Architecture Resource. Andrew Carnegie and the Canadian Carnegie Libraries. 2014. Accessed October 21, 2014. https://libraryarchitecture.wikispaces.com/Andrew+Carnegie+and+the+Canadian+Carnegie+Libraries
3) The Ottawa City Directory. City Directory. 1923. Accessed October 21, 2014. https://archive.org/stream/ottawadirec192300midiuoft#page/8/mode/2up
4) Urbsite. Unforgotten Ottawa: The Carnegie Library 2012. Accessed October 21, 2014. http://urbsite.blogspot.ca/2012/09/unforgotten-ottawa-carnegie-library.html

RBSC Bookplates

2014

Images provided for research and reference use only. Permission to publish, copy, or otherwise use these images must be obtained from Rare Books and Special Collections: http://rbsc.library.ubc.ca

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