Curtis Memorial Library, Brunswick Maine

NAME:Curtis Memorial Library
INSTITUTION: Brunswick, Maine Library
DATE OF CONSTRUCTION
: original 1904, additions, 1973, 1999
STYLE: Original- Brick functional, 1973 addition-Modern, 1999 addition-municipal
HISTORICAL SUMMARY
According to the Curtis Library webpage the Curtis Library was almost a Carnegie Library. Other Maine communities such as Freeport, Auburn, Lewiston, Fort Fairfield and Rockland had already built libraries with Carnegie Foundation funding. However, in the case of Brunswick a wealthy New York lawyer, Bowdoin graduate and Brunswick native by the name of William J. Curtis intervened and asked Carnegie to withdraw funding as he had always “cherished the idea of presenting to his native town a library building as a tribute to his father’s memory.” Carnegie responded in kind-

40 Wall Street
New York City
January 20, 1903
Dear Mr. Curtis:
I get many letters, bud do not remember one which has given me more pleasure to receive than yours this morning. Of course I withdraw; I would not rob you of that chief blessing for the world. Will you please tell the authorities this.
Make your announcement and become a happy man all your days. I am so happy for your letter, and shake you by the hand. Always
Very truly yours,
Andrew Carnegie

The original library was completed in 1904 and sits on the intersection of Middle and Pleasant Streets. The building of brick and granite trim was designed by a Boston architect and constructed entirely by local's from Brunswick.
By 1973 a modern addition had been added so as to keep up with a tripling of the local population. The addition was of a basic functional modernist style and extended far behind the original structure.

<- Photo 1973 Addition




The entrance thus moved from the main building on Pleasant St.-
<- photo view of 1904 Building from Pleasant St




to its current position behind the main building on Middle street-

<- Photo/Current entrance on middle street, showing 1999 Addition)

The result was that the original 1904 structure saw very little use, and served more as an empty facade. The new addition was approved in 1996 when it was decided that the population had again outgrown its confines. It was decided by the architects, Amsler, Woodhouse and MacLean of Boston, to tear down the 1973 addition in order to add a second level. The 1999 addition was built with further regard for the original 1904 building and incorporated it into the floor plan as a quiet reading room.

COMMENTS
My initial reaction to the Curtis Library was confusion. I have to admit that it took over a year of living in the Brunswick area to actually find the entrance though I had driven past it hundreds of times on my way home from Portland on Pleasant St. The reason is that the only portion of the library that is visible from Pleasant St. is the old 1904 entrance, which at first glance looks like an underfunded High School. A closer look, however reveals intricate craftmanship on the brick and granite work.

<- photo closeup of main entrance

Once I finally figured out that the actual entrance is on the seldom traveled Middle Street I was actually somewhat impressed by the respect to the original structure that the much larger, modern addition showed. Most additions to older civic structures tend to stick to glass-box modernism in an effort to highlight the original's beauty in a new context. In fact the National Park Service mandates that all new structures on NPS land (visitor centers, observatories etc...) follow a strict modernist design so as to draw a clear line between "modern" and "historic". The 1999 addition doesn't follow this pattern but rather mimics the brickwork and granite design while adding some modern flourishes.






The interior is also impressive. It seems quite large for a town the size of Brunswick at first, but one quickly notices the level of traffic is quite high even for such a large building. The first level is the busiest with the circulation desk, media collections, and free internet connections. The main staircase to the second floor is the most striking interior feature as the architects wrapped the connector to the 1904 building with a brilliant skylight in a fashion that maintains the autonomy of the original structure as a quiet holdout from another era.

<- photo/ 1904 Building seen from second floor of addition

The original structure houses the "quiet" reading rooms, complete with leather upholstery, ships-in-bottles, and paintings of local dignitaries and Clipper Ships. The difference in atmosphere between the old structure and the new is striking. Indeed, the patronage of these spaces reflects the atmospheric symbolism as the main floor tends to be patronized by teenagers, and a more boisterous set while the old building attracts an older, retired set who prefer the newspaper to the internet. It will be interesting to note if other libraries, many of which have additions to their original structures, maintain a similar generational dichotomy!

Special Thanks to Michael Heath of the Curtis Memorial Library
For more info on the history of the library check out A History of the Public Library in Brunswick, Maine by Louise R. Helmreich