Carnegie Public Library

National Register Listing

Street Address:

219 W. Liberty St., Sumter, SC (Sumter County)

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NRHP Nomination

Record Number:

S10817743004

Description and Narrative:

Sumter’s first and only public library from 1917 to 1968, was one of the 1,679 public libraries built in the United States with funding from the Carnegie Corporation, and represents the trend towards the establishment of public libraries in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This simple Beaux Arts building was designed by local architects J. Herbert Johnson and N. Gaillard Walker, in conjunction with Secretary James Bertram of the Carnegie Corporation. This building represents the progressive and civic-minded nature of the citizens of Sumter during the first decade of the twentieth century, as well as the social responsibility displayed by Andrew Carnegie. Though the $10,000 cost of construction was funded by the Carnegie Corporation, the operation and maintenance of the library was the financial responsibility of the city of Sumter. The Sumter Civic League raised money to purchase books for the library. The building was a center for learning for the citizens of the city for a large part of the twentieth century. Listed in the National Register August 5, 1994.

Period of Significance:

1917

Level of Significance:

Local

Area of Significance:

Education;Architecture

National Register Determination:

listed

Date of Certification:

August 5 1994

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