Glimpses of Canadian History, one vibrant moment at a time
  • Home
  • Admin
  • About me

The Carnegie Library, er… Carnegie Libraries, in Canada

  • By Susie
  • Feb-28-2012
  • Fascinating Canadian History
  • Comments Off on The Carnegie Library, er… Carnegie Libraries, in Canada

 

American Industrial magnate Andrew Carnegie used his wealth to promote education and literacy for all. A portion of his fortune was used to construct 125 libraries in Canada

“There is not such a cradle of democracy upon the earth as the Free Public Library, this republic of letters, where neither rank, office, nor wealth receives the slightest consideration.” – Andrew Carnegie

The wealthy American industrialist of the late 1800s did not speak the words for others to enact. Andrew Carnegie gave his time, inspirations and money to provide libraries for his own countrymen and then looked north. Due to his generosity, 125 libraries were constructed to advance literacy and education across Canada.

Carnegie’s Generous Philanthropy

Earning his fortunes in the railway, iron and oil, the young immigrant from Scotland was affluent by the age of 30. He then invested in the steel industry, opening the Carnegie Steel Company in 1889. The industrial age was in a boom; Carnegie sold his company to another industrialist, JP Morgan, for a whopping $480 million in 1901, making him one of the richest men in America. Able to put his philanthropic goals into action, Carnegie spent $350 million of his own money for the pure benefit of others.

Education and Literacy for All

Education and literacy were most important to Andrew Carnegie, and one of the ways that all people could gain education was through free libraries. (Often, at that time, patrons needed to buy a membership or had to pay a fee to use the library.) Carnegie held that, “he could provide the public with the tools necessary to succeed, regardless of their socio-economic background,” said the Ontario Government’s Ministry of Culture. Between Carnegie and his business partner, James Bertram, a formula was established to distribute grant money for libraries. Applicants were required to:

  • Prove the need for a public library in their town
  • Provide land for the building
  • Provide 10% of the building cost annually to pay for operations
  • Use the building only as a library.

The grants proved popular with towns and cities alike. Around the world, Carnegie constructed 2,509 library facilities. In Canada, 125 libraries were built with Carnegie funding, 111 of those in Ontario. The average grant, said Ontario’s Ministry of Culture, was $10,000 (in today’s dollars, about $650,000) and the total spent in Canada in those early dollars was the liberal amount of $2,556,600. Some libraries received larger grants. The first Winnipeg Public Library received $75,000, opening in October 1905. The Toronto Public Library system was granted the massive amount of $487,500 for a main library and nine branches, plus one university library, all built between 1909 and 1916.

Opposed to Carnegie Grants

The grants to libraries did not go unchallenged by Canadians, especially in Toronto. The issue of Carnegie’s “heartless handling” of strikers at his steel mill in Pennsylvania caused him to be “demonized by many labour organizers across the continent who regarded his library funds as ‘blood money,’” according to Kevin Plummer, author of “Andrew Carnegie’s Toronto Legacy” in The Torontoist, October 2008. The matter was eventually resolved and the library grants were accepted.

Many of the Carnegie libraries were large, stately constructions, built of limestone or brick, with beautiful Greek and Roman style arches and columns, and some, such as the Winnipeg library, with gleaming marble staircases. An innovation of Carnegie was opening the stacks to patrons. Previously, library book stacks were secured behind the circulation desk. A request was made to the librarian and she would retrieve the book for the patron. Carnegie thought that the stacks should not be closed to patrons. Visitors should be able to see and touch the books and make their own selections – the system library patrons still enjoy today, thanks to Andrew Carnegie.

Carnegie Libraries Disappearing

As time marched on, the Carnegie libraries of Canada have changed. Of the 111 libraries in Ontario, 63 are still in use. Others have been transformed from libraries filled with books into offices and other uses; some sadly have been torn down.

Through the Carnegie Institute, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and the Carnegie Endowment for Peace, the inspirations of Andrew Carnegie continue to influence and enhance lives around the globe. From New Brunswick to British Columbia and north to the Yukon, a large number of Canadians enjoyed the educational benefits of the free library supported by the big-hearted philanthropist. Andrew Carnegie died at age 84 of pneumonia on August 11, 1919.

“Surplus wealth is a sacred trust which its possessor is bound to administer in his lifetime for the good of the community.” – Andrew Carnegie

Visit St. Mary’s Public Library in Southern Ontario for a view of a magnificent Carnegie Library in action. (More beautiful architectural photos of the Library will be available on that site soon.)

Sources:

“Historicist: Andrew Carnegie’s Toronto Legacy,” by Kevin Plummer, The Torontoist, October 2008.

“Andrew Carnegie,” Ontario’s Carnegie Libraries, Ministry of Culture, Government of Ontario.

“Toronto’s Carnegie Libraries,” About the Library, Toronto Public Library Site.

“Winnipeg’s Carnegie Library Celebrates100th Anniversary,” The Manitoba Historical Society, October 18, 2005.

 

Photo, public domain, from Library and Archives Canada at Collections Canada,
This Canadian History article first appeared on Suite101.com.                                       ©  Susanna McLeod

Comments

← Previous Post Next Post →

Categories

  • Fascinating Canadian History
  • Those Canadian Women, they got this

Search:

Archives

  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • November 2017
  • April 2017
  • February 2017
  • November 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
About This Site

A cras tincidunt, ut tellus et. Gravida scel ipsum sed iaculis, nunc non nam. Placerat sed phase llus, purus purus elit.

Archives Widget
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
Categories
  • Entertainment
  • Technology
  • Sports & Recreation
  • Jobs & Lifestyle
Search

Powered by WordPress  |  Business Directory by InkThemes.