Ramsey County History – Spring 2012: “St. Paul’s Beaux-Arts Libraries: Philanthropic Architecture in a Local Context”

St. Paul’s Beaux-Arts Libraries: Philanthropic Architecture in a Local Context
Author: Lauren M. Freese

In 1917, Saint Paul City Architect Charles Hausler designed three libraries in St. Paul. They are the St. Anthony Park Free Public Library; the Riverview Free Public Library (West Side); and the Arlington Hills Free Public Library (Payne/Phalen). The Carnegie Corporation supplied the money for the construction of these libraries; hence they are known as “Carnegie libraries.” Hausler designed all of them in the same Beaux-Arts style, and each was built by the same construction company working with nearly identical architectural plans. All three had the same budget. Despite their shared origin, the façades of all three are different in subtle, but important, ways. Freese analyzes the plans, budgets, and the façades of the libraries to explain the why they differ. Her conclusion is that popular beliefs and perceptions of immigrant groups in these neighborhoods and the socioeconomic variations among them manifested themselves in the architectural differences in the libraries’ façades and decorative programs.
PDF of Freese article