Pratt Institute Libraries

Pratt Institute Libraries is the academic library system of Pratt Institute. The main library is located on the main campus in Brooklyn, NY, with a branch library in Manhattan. The collection focus includes the arts, architecture, design, information science and allied fields. Holdings include 200,000 printed volumes, over 600 periodicals, rare books, digital images resources including Pratt Institute specific Digital Image Collection, and the Institute's archives.[1] It has the distinction of being the “first free public library in Brooklyn” [2] and its Brooklyn building is a New York City designated landmark.[3]

Pratt Institute Libraries
Main library at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY
LocationNew York City, United States
TypeAcademic library
ScopeArt, architecture, design, library science
Established1888
Architect(s)William Tubby Edit this on Wikidata
Branches1
Other information
Websitelibrary.pratt.edu

History

The library at Pratt Institute opened in 1888 in the Main Building on Pratt's campus in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn.[4][5] The library moved into a new building located on Ryerson Street in May 1896.[3] Originally called the Pratt Institute Free Library, it was open to anyone who lived or worked in Brooklyn.[2] Branch libraries of the Pratt Institute Free Library included the Astral Branch—located on the ground floor of the Astral Apartments (another Charles Pratt initiative), and the Long Island Branch at 571 Atlantic Ave.[6] By 1940 the Pratt Libraries closed to the public, partly because the Brooklyn Public Library was able to support the needs of the community.

Some scenes from the 1978 adult film Debbie Does Dallas were filmed in the library.[7][8]

Architecture
Stairwell of the library

The building was designed by William B. Tubby, with interiors by Tiffany & Company. The three-story brick building was designed in a Renaissance Revival style.[3] A feature of the interior is a marble staircase and pillars. The floors of the book stacks are made of glass and the stacks are a design by Library Bureau, which include oak shelves and copper-plated iron supports.[5] Early renovations included the addition of a Children's Porch in 1912 to provide direct access to the Children's Room. The North Porch was added in the 1930s by architect John Mead Howells.[9] Renovations in the early 1980s by architects Giorgio Cavaglieri and Warren Gran included the removal of the Children's Porch to another building on campus, an underground extension including additional stacks, study areas, and classroom with an outdoor mall above, and the addition of a climate-control system.[10][11] In 1981 the library building in Brooklyn was officially designated a New York City Landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Notable librarians
  • Mary Wright Plummer - Founder of the Pratt Library School, director of the Pratt Libraries beginning in 1895, and director of ALA for the 1915-16 year.[12]
  • Isabel Ely Lord - Author, editor and Head Librarian for Pratt Institute from 1904 until 1910, and director of the School of Household Sciences and Arts at Pratt.[13]
  • Anne Carroll Moore - Librarian at Pratt Library from 1896-1906, and early advocate for children's libraries.[14]
  • Josephine Adams Rathbone - President of the American Library Association in 1931–32, "chief instructor" in the Pratt Institute Library School from 1895-1911, and vice-director of the Pratt Institute school from 1911-1938.[15]
  • Edward Francis Stevens - Head of Applied Sciences Reference Department at Pratt Institute Free Library from 1903-1910, and Librarian at Pratt Library and Director of Pratt School of Library Science from 1911-1938.[16]
  • Wayne Shirley - Director of Pratt Library, Dean of the Pratt Library School and co-founder of the ALA American Library History Round Table.[17]
  • Rice Estes - Director of Pratt Institute Libraries from 1955-1972, and husband of librarian and Newbery Award winning children's author Eleanor Estes.[18]

References
  1. "Brooklyn Campus Library: About the Library". Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  2. "Pratt Boasts Oldest Library in Brooklyn". New York Journal American. No. Brooklyn Section. March 18, 1958. p. 1.
  3. Pearson, Marjorie (December 22, 1981). "Pratt Institute Library" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  4. Perry, Walter Scott (1930). Pratt Institute: Its Beginning and Development (2nd ed.). Brooklyn, NY. pp. 11–12.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. Avery, Mary L. (1896). "The Evolution of the Pratt Institute Free Library". Pratt Institute Monthly. 4 (10): 287–301. hdl:2027/mdp.39015033943534.
  6. Ostrander, Stephen M. (1894). A History of the City of Brooklyn and Kings County. Vol. II. Brooklyn, NY.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. Manbeck, John B.; Singer, Robert, eds. (2003). "A Select Filmography". The Brooklyn Film: Essays in the History of Filmmaking. Jefferson: McFarland. p. 193. ISBN 9780786414055.
  8. West, Ashley. "Adult Film Locations 8: Debbie Does Dallas (1978)". therialtoreport.com. Retrieved June 3, 2023.
  9. The Pratt Library 100th Anniversary Celebration.
  10. Moin, David (September 26, 1980). "Ceremonies Mark Start of Pratt Library Renovation". North Brooklyn News. p. 5.
  11. Spellen, Suzanne (January 19, 2011). "Building of the Day: 224-228 Ryerson Street". Brownstoner.
  12. Wynar, Bohdan S., ed. (1978). Dictionary of American Library Biography. Littleton, Colorado: Libraries Unlimited, Inc. p. 399. ISBN 0-87287-180-0.
  13. "Necrology" (PDF). College and Research Libraries: 233. May 1959.
  14. Lepore, Jill (July 21, 2008). "The Lion and the Mouse: The battle that reshaped children's literature". The New Yorker.
  15. Brand, Barbara B. "Pratt Institute Library School: The Perils of Professionalization." In Suzanne Hildenbrand (Ed.), Reclaiming the American Library Past: Writing the Women In, pp. 251-278. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing, 1996.
  16. "The Colby Alumnus" (PDF). No. Summer. 1956. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  17. "Deaths" (PDF). Wilson Library Bulletin: 457. February 1974.
  18. Rierden, Andi (September 5, 1993). "New-Found Riches In Sharing a Home". New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2015.

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