11 Most Beautifully Stunning Libraries in America

There are thousands of public and private libraries around the US. Among them, some interesting ones you won’t want to miss, and I’m not talking about the local library in your town. Unless, of course, your town happens to be Washington, and that place is the Library of Congress!

A “must-see” place isn’t always about parks and recreation. America’s libraries are just as fascinating as any other marvels on display. The added bonus to these architectural places is that you can access a whole new world and get lost in all the stories you’ll find inside a book!

All libraries are valuable, considering knowledge is power, but we’ve picked out a few that will mesmerize you with their beautiful architecture.

Beinecke Rare Book And Manuscript Library, New Haven, CT

If rare books and manuscripts interest you, this library won’t disappoint! Worth mentioning is that the Gutenberg Bible can be found here on permanent display.

The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library is the rare book library and literary archive of the Yale University Library in New Haven, CT. Established by a gift from the Beinecke family and given its own financial endowment, the library is financially independent of the university and is co-governed by the University Library and Yale Corporation.

Situated on Yale University’s Hewitt Quadrangle, it is one of the biggest buildings in the world dedicated to rare books and manuscripts.

Our next one is a rare sight…..

The Boston Public Library, Boston, MA

Here you can set your sight on the first free library in the US. Besides a collection of rare books, you will find inside murals, maps, and prints. Founded in 1848, the library contains around 24 million pieces, making it the third-largest public library in the United States. The first two being the federal Library of Congress and the New York Public Library!

In addition, the library is both a federal and state depository of government documents. It possesses wide-ranging and valuable holdings, including medieval manuscripts, early editions of William Shakespeare, records of colonial Boston, and the personal 3,800 volume library of John Adams.

George apparently has a nice body?……

George Peabody Library, Baltimore, MD

Also known as Baltimore’s Cathedral of Books, this neo-Greco-designed library, complete with a frosted skylight, has a 61ft high interior and houses over 300,000 books. Its location is on the Peabody campus at West Mount Vernon Place in the historic cultural neighborhood north of downtown Baltimore, across from the Washington Monument.

The books are open to view for the general public, keeping with the famous Baltimorean philanthropist George Peabody’s intent to create a library “for the free use of all persons who desire to consult it.” The primary collection reflects broad interests but is more focused on the 19th century, in keeping with Peabody’s wish for it to be well furnished in every department of knowledge.

Castles aren’t just for kings…..

Hearst Castle, San Simeon, CA

Once the private home of publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst, this European-styled library displays a massive collection of books, but also antiques and art! Orson Welles mocked Hearst, his castle, and his lifestyle in his 1941 film Citizen Kane. In the movie, Charles Foster Kane’s palace Xanadu contains a collection of everything so big it can never be cataloged or appraised. Welles’ allusion referred to Hearst’s mania for collecting. The dealer Joseph Duveen called him the “Great Accumulator.”

With a passion for acquisition from childhood, he bought architectural elements, art, antiques, sculptures, silverware, and textiles on a grand scale. Shortly after starting Hearst Castle, he began to imagine making the castle “a museum of the best things that I can secure.”

Among his purchases were architectural elements from Western Europe, particularly Spain. Over thirty ceilings, doorcases, fireplaces and mantels, entire monasteries, and paneling were purchased and transported to California. In addition, he built up collections of more conventional art and antiques of high quality, including his ancient Greek vases, which were one of the world’s largest.

Our next library could be considered the heart of America…..

Library Of Congress, Washington, DC

Open since 1897, you’ll get a peek at our country’s architectural roots at America’s oldest federal institution. All on top of capitol hill in three buildings. The library is home to more than 164 million items, from books to photos to recordings to maps and much more. It also serves as a museum, with many exhibits inside the incredible Thomas Jefferson Building.

All the Library of Congress’ buildings can be entered free of charge, but you can get the best visitor experience inside the Library’s Thomas Jefferson Building, where you will be impressed upon walking through the door. Gilded Age architecture makes the inside a visual masterpiece worthy of housing the immense amount of knowledge that it holds.

Snap some photos while exploring the building’s many exhibits!

The pharaohs would be proud of our next library…..

Los Angeles Central Library, Los Angeles, CA

Since 1926 this library has been captivating its audience with its ancient Egypt mixed with Art Deco style. You’ll be impressed by the tiled pyramid on top holding a golden hand with a torch.

Suspended from the ceiling is the exquisite Zodiac Chandelier, with a stained glass globe serving as its core and zodiac symbols surrounding it.

Worth noting, though, it’s considered the city’s phoenix. Like the mythological creature, the Central Library emerged full of life after a devastating fire in 1986.

The focal point of the old library, also known as the Goodhue Building, is the Rotunda. The walls feature murals depicting California’s history.

We’d be lion if we said this place wasn’t spectacular…..

New York Public Library, New York, NY

The Big Apple’s most recognizable landmark can be found here. Besides the twin statues, the inside isn’t too shabby either. That may be why it was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1965.

The Main Branch was built after the New York Public Library was formed as a combination of two libraries in the late 1890s. It became popular after its opening and saw 4 million annual visitors by the 1920s.

The Library has also been featured in many television shows. Among them, Seinfeld and Sex and the City. And films such as The Wiz in 1978, Ghostbusters in 1984, and The Day After Tomorrow in 2004.

This next library will be music to your ears…..

The Morgan Library And Museum, New York, NY

Besides the impressive collection of books and ancient artifacts donated by JP Morgan Jr, this library occupies half a city block!

Notable are Charles Dickens manuscript of A Christmas Carol with handwritten edits from the author, a journal by Henry David Thoreau, and there are also writings from George Sand, William Makepeace Thackeray, Lord Byron, and Charlotte Bronte.

The Morgan’s musical manuscript collection includes autographed and annotated scores and libretti from Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin, Mahler and Verdi, and Mozart’s Haffner Symphony in D Major.

The collection also holds the scraps of paper Bob Dylan wrote down “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “It Ain’t Me Babe.”

You might find a cat in a hat in this next library…..

The Geisel Library, San Diego, CA

This concrete beauty sits on a canyon and houses over seven million volumes on the UC San Diego campus. It’s named after Theodor Geisel. But you probably know him as Dr. Suess!

The Geisel Library’s carillon is on the roof above the high towers. The carillonneur plays the chimes every hour during the day, beginning at 7 am on weekdays, and has mini-concerts each weekday at noon. The chimes are also played for other special occasions, like the first and last day of school, and you can make song requests to the carillonneur.

A snaking path unites the Warren Mall and the Geisel Library Building with a garden filled with fruit trees that you shouldn’t miss when visiting.

Next, it’s Washington but not in Washington…..

Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago, IL

It’s been called “a building of memories.” The Harold Washington Library Center is designed to be a celebration of iconic Chicago architecture. It’s not surprising that many people think the Library is an old Chicago building.

As a postmodern structure, it references the past, making it seem somehow familiar but also blending in well with its nineteenth-century neighbors. Its textured, diverse materials give it a handcrafted look. And for the first time since the 1930s, we see exterior symbolic ornamentation on a large American public building.

On the 9th floor, the spectacular Winter Garden is perfect for quiet study, deep conversation, and some peace and quiet in the bustling heart of downtown.

And here, Chicago’s only free music practice rooms are available to the public, including pianos and over 40,000 volumes of printed music, which are on the 8th floor.

This last library has something cooking…..

William W. Cook Legal Library, Ann Arbor, MI

If you’re an architecture nerd mixed with a Harry Potter fan, this 13-floor place is where you want to be! You’ll understand why when you see the vast reading room, complete with elegant chandeliers, large desks, and wooden paneling.

The 182 elegant stained glass windows stand out in this huge place. Each is a seal of a distinguished university from around the world. Among the seals are Harvard, Yale, Brown, Howard, Oxford, University of Edinburgh, and Carnegie Mellon.

The library’s collection includes rare law books, the oldest being a first edition of Johannes Nider’s De contractibus mercatorum, circa 1468!

The outside isn’t exactly an eyesore either. You won’t want to miss the corbel wall stone carvings.