Alameda Free Library

	Alameda Free Library
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
	Official logo
Location	2264 Santa Clara Ave., Alameda, California
Coordinates	37°45′57″N 122°14′33″W / 37.76583°N 122.24250°W
Area	0.2 acres (0.081 ha)
Built	1902
Architect	C. H. Foster & Son
Architectural style	Mixed
NRHP reference No.	82002152
Added to NRHP	June 25, 1982

The Alameda Free Library is the city library of Alameda, California. The Carnegie library was built from 1902 to 1903 and was the first designated building for the city's library, which had been housed in various other buildings since 1877. The library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 25, 1982.^[1] The Alameda Free Library is located across the street from the Alameda City Hall, another NHRP-listed site.^[2]

Architectural history[edit]

C. H. Foster and his son G. J. Foster designed the building in an eclectic blend of multiple architectural styles, including Neoclassical, Renaissance Revival, and Baroque Revival. The two-story building is faced with pressed and molded buff brick outside of its basement, which was built in gray sandstone.

The library's front has a portico with two brick columns and a frieze with a decorative tympanum displaying an open book; the columns were the first of their kind in California. The building's entrance is located within the portico atop sets of marble and granite stairs. A pair of windows appears to each side of the entrance; the top window in each pair is arched, while the bottom one is rectangular and flanked by columns. The metal hipped roof of the library has a raised glass skylight. The library's main room is on the second story, which can be reached by a marble staircase; the main room contains five stained glass windows on its south wall.^[3]

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
^ "Alameda's Carnegie building could become arts center". East Bay Times. 2019-02-19. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
^ "Alameda Free Library". Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service. Retrieved March 28, 2013.

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[nris-1] "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.

[2] "Alameda's Carnegie building could become arts center". East Bay Times. 2019-02-19. Retrieved 2023-09-20.

[3] "Alameda Free Library". Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service. Retrieved March 28, 2013.

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v t e Alameda, California
Landmarks	Croll Building USS Hornet Museum Alameda Theatre China Clipper flight departure site
Economy	Alameda Municipal Power Integrated Support Command Alameda
Education	College of Alameda Alameda Unified School District Alameda High Encinal High Alameda Science and Technology Institute Island Continuation St. Joseph Notre Dame High Alameda Community Learning Center
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Locations	Alameda Island Alameda Point Bay Farm Island Coast Guard Island Fernside Chochenyo Park Crown Memorial State Beach South Shore West End Woodstock
Category

v t e National Register of Historic Places in California
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v t e Public libraries in California
City-county	San Francisco
County	Alameda Contra Costa Fresno Kern Los Angeles Marin San Diego San Mateo Santa Clara Ventura Yuba
City	Alameda Berkeley Beverly Hills Camarillo Carlsbad Cerritos Escondido Fullerton Hemet Huntington Beach Long Beach Los Angeles Oakland Oxnard Pleasanton Riverside Sacramento San Diego San José Santa Barbara Santa Clara Santa Monica Sausalito South San Francisco Sunnyvale Thousand Oaks
See also	Internet Archive (electronic) Peninsula Library System (inter-library system organization)

Architectural history[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]