Civic Pride in a Lost America: Library Postcards
Public Libraries of New York
Cities T-Z
Tannersville
Library at Onteora Park.
Two linen-finish cards.
(L) By Metropolitan of Everett, Massachusetts.
(R) Colourpicture card.
Confusing library circumstances. Both cards call this as a library on Oneonta Park. However, the current building is called Mountain Top Library, was called the Haines Falls Free Library, and the illustration is not of the building shown on the postcards.
Tarrytown (Warner Library)
The 1929 library is still in use, bedecked with some wonderful art objects.
The Dexter Press chrome postcard was never mailed.
Troy (Hart Memorial Library)
The Library has multiple history pages. Considered to be one of the earlier examples of the emerging American Renaissance style, the building began to disintegrate in the 1970s and was heavily renovated in order to preserve it.
Valentine-Souvenir postcard, mailed in 1921 as a New Year's card.
Tonawanda (High School & Public Library)
Normally, I neither buy nor display high school libraries, but this clearly states that its library was a public library. Annotated, "Visited Oct. 12th 06"
Caption:
High School and Public Library, Tonawanda, N.Y. The School System of the Tonawandas is unsurpassed.
Tuxedo Park
The Library occupies only a portion of the space in the building shown. Amazingly, some of its trustees have included celebrities such as Augustus Juillard, Fred Gwynne, and Robert Duvall.
Silvercraft card, by Dexter Press. Mailed in 1947.
Utica
(L) Fifer Quality View.
(R) Card produced for Woolworth.
Library still in use. Very detailed library history. My favorite line:
1895 -- A handwritten card catalog is started. It takes three years to complete and totals 58,000 cards.
And I thought typing catalog cards was laborious!
Walton (William B. Ogden Free Library)
Here is another aluminum postcard. (The other--of Hallowell, ME's library--is on the Maine page, and is in much better condition.)
What really impresses me about the founding is that this is the same gentleman who served as the first mayor of Chicago (1837-8), and for whom Ogden Avenue (US 34) is named. From postmaster of a Catskills village to the top position in the Second City: simply amazing.
And, upon his 1877 death, he left funds for his hometown to have a new library building.
Wappingers Falls
Now the Grinnell Public Library.
It bills itself as the '6th Oldest Library in New York,' an oddly specific claim.
You can't argue with an 1867 founding date, however. The unspecified architect modeled this 1887 building after one in St. Battenberg, Switzerland and another in England.
Its most recent remodeling was in 2008.
S.D. Wixson card, mailed with a Parcel Post 1¢ stamp in 1914.
Warrensburg (Richards Library)
Founding assisted by the Richards sisters.
The building was built of local dolomitic limestone by contractor Jonah Hess, who finished in 1900. It is still in use.
Tichnor Quality View. I'm not vouching for its quality after its 1931 mailing.
Warwick, Orange Co. (Albert Wisner Memorial Library)
Unfortunately, someone tried to include the post office on the 1968 card.
In early 2011, this building was sold to the Warwick Historical Society.
Washingtonville (Moffat Library)
When this chrome postcard was printed, the unusual building also housed the town offices. By the way, that car is a Studebaker.
Waterloo
Still in use. The building also incorporates the Historical Society.
(L) Printed in Germany for Rochester News.
(R) Tichnor Quality View, white border era.
Watertown (Roswell P. Flower Memorial Library)
This is the best (1906 Rotograph) postcard of a motley bunch.
The Library has an incredible walking tour on its website. I wish more city libraries would do this. I will inform you that Flower was a New York Governor.
Wellsville (David A. Howe Library)
"Why a Carnegie Library?"
In some states, these would be known as famous last words. In this case, a library trustee's nephew decided to fund this building in 1910. Although it has been replaced, the roughly Beaux-Arts building now houses municipal offices.
Happy all around.
The 1937 building is Georgian Colonial style, and is still in use, apparently without additions or renovations. Mr. Howe died in 1925, and left monies for a second building.
Photo postcard with high production quality, mailed in 1960.
Westfield (Patterson Library)
Without slope to its roof, just how many books were lost due to leaks?
Contains the notes: From Curteich--'Gift of Miss Hannah W. Patterson, containing 44,000 volumes in memory of her parents.'
From the purchaser--'Arrow under window at far right points to basement entrance to Girl Scout Little House.'
(L) Wan little Tichnor Bros. card, probably from ca. WW I
(R) H.F. Brown produced this amazing slice-of-library-life postcard. It was mailed in 1912.
Westport
The Westport Library Association is still operating in this building, but its hours are minimal: 20-28 hours/week, depending on the season.
The M.B. Allen postcard gives its history: founded in 1887 by Miss Alice Lee, WLA moved into this building in 1888, and the attractive clock tower was added in 1908.
The clock is more essential than ever with those minimal hours.
Woodstock
This library building was threatened in 2018. Recent photos show an extra wing added to the building, which resembles a 1910s farm house.
The post card is a "Photo Tone" by Eagle Post Card, printed for H. Houst & Son.
Do you see the Library? It's the clapboard building way in the background.
Surprise! Both the Woodstock Library Fair and the Library building still exist.
The postcard image came from an Ektachrome image by Bob Wyer (really!), and is undated.