Times they are a changing. The library I have the fondest memories of is the Alameda Public Library (now the Alameda Free Library). It was housed in a beautiful, historic building on Oak Street in Alameda, California where I grew up—across the bay from San Francisco. My family moved out of the area only a couple years after I graduated high school, so I haven’t had the occasion to return.
Oh, the hours I spent researching for essays (no, we didn’t have computers back then) and school newspapers. Sitting in the deep leather chairs with the fractured light pouring through the stained-glass windows. The smells of old books—a little musty with age and, no doubt, dampness. Browsing the shelves that towered above me, yet still didn’t come close to reaching the fifteen-foot ceilings. Ornate, carved woodwork.
Even though I wanted to focus this series on libraries in the Southern states, I couldn’t help but Google my childhood library to see if the pictures lived up to the memories. Sadly, I found that the library is now set in a modern building—all stucco and glass—with seemingly stunted shelves, light-filled rooms with lots of bright colors. Yes, it makes much more sense and is probably more conducive to attracting patrons and fostering study and research. But sad, nonetheless.
So, imagine my delight when I came across an article in Texas Highways featuring the Dr. Eugene Clark Library in Caldwell County, Lockhart. Erected in 1899, it is the oldest United States library still housed in its original building. The smells described when entering the place is of “woody, almost like chocolate and coffee.” The high ceilings are covered in light-colored tin and the walls painted a pale cream making the space fairly glow. Stunning!
This library is located at 217 S. Main Street, about a block from the “striking” Caldwell County Courthouse. The library’s deep red-brick Classical Revival dome-topped building is “vivid and stately,” and serves as one of the cornerstones of the Lockhart community. The two-story building was designed by T.S. Hodges, a local contractor who also worked on other well-known community projects including the castle-like Caldwell County Jail. I’d like to see that for myself. It’s not every day you see a medieval jailhouse.
Within the Dr. Eugene Clark Library is the Irving Room, where glass-encased bookshelves house Dr. Clark’s original textbooks, including The Rules of Aseptic and Antiseptic in Surgery by Arpad Gerster (1888) and Text-book of Hygiene by George H. Rohé (1885). A library and a museum!
What is the fun of an historic building without a story behind it? It is suggested that the creation of the Irving Room was due to Dr. Clark’s own unrequited love. Although he was from New Orleans, he lived and practiced in Lockhart for about 13 years in the latter part of the 1800s before returning to his native home. During his time there, he fell in love with a young woman named Mamie Steele. She was a member of the local lyceum club (an organization of women who want to promote cultural exchange, broaden their knowledge, and make friends through mutual interests).
Alas, Miss Steele’s heart belonged to another. Maybe it was for the best, as Dr. Clark died in 1897 at the age of 30, but not before bequeathing $10,000 to build a library for Lockhart, with the specification that it should include a meeting room for the women’s lyceum. Local members of the Irving Club still meet in the second-floor space, and it is the second oldest chapter of the Texas Federation of Women’s Club.
In 1996, the library was expanded to include the neighboring 1850 Masonic Temple. That renovated building now houses many of the library’s books as well as the technology room. If only my old library was that creative! The Lockhart City Council use the third floor of the temple as a meeting place.
There have been a couple of famous visitors such as William Howard Taft, who delivered a speech on the library’s stage at the turn of the century. In addition, the library’s interior has been used as a set locations for movies such as The Faculty (with Elijah Wood and Josh Harnett) and Secondhand Lions—which is a favorite of mine—(with Haley Joel Osmont and Michael Caine).
Now that I’ve spent nearly 900 words waxing poetic about a library I’ve never actually seen, I’ll end this post by reminding you to come back tomorrow for another article. In the meantime, don’t forget to enter for your chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card.
You can still get the ebook version of Mayhem and Moonlight for the preorder price of $2.99. Be sure to claim your preorder gift by filling out the form from my publisher’s website. Just have your Amazon order number handy. If you prefer the paperback version, it is now available and already includes the preorder gift.
