Portland Public Library


Portland Public Library is the main library of the public library system in Portland, Maine, USA. It is located at 5 Monument [Square (Portland, Maine)|Monument Square] on Congress [Street (Portland, Maine)|Congress Street] in the Old Port of Portland, Maine. The library has three neighborhood branches, Burbank branch, Peaks Island branch, and Riverton branch.
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History

Portland Athenaeum

The Portland Athenaeum was a subscription library incorporated in Portland by a collection of local residents. As gratefully noted in a local newspaper in 1826:
Early supporters included Stephen Longfellow, and William Willis. By 1856, the Athenaeum had "160 proprietors and... a library, in the hall second story of the Canal Bank building, of 8,500 volumes." James Merrill served as librarian,.
In 1861, the Athenaeum erected a brick building on a lot previously purchased in Plum street. By 1864, the library contained 10,647 bound books, and additional pamphlets.
In 1866, the Great Fire swept through Portland, and the Athenaeum lost its collection in the flames.

Portland Institute and Public Library

Immediately following the fire in 1866, critic and writer John Neal proposed merging the Athenaeum with the libraries of the Mercantile Association, Maine Charitable Mechanic Association, and YMCA. The Portland Institute and Public Library formed in January 1867, with its library located in Portland [City Hall (Maine)|Portland City Hall]. Willis served as the first president, and Neal the second. In 1876, the Athenaeum merged into the Portland Institute and Public Library; this bestowed the Atheneum's Plum Street property on the institute, although the library remained at City Hall.
In January 1889, the Portland Institute and Public Library was renamed as Portland Public Library, and became free for readers to access.

Portland Public Library

In 1889, the library moved into what is now known as the Baxter Building, at 619 Congress Street.
The main library moved to Monument Square in 1979, into a new construction which replaced the three-story Clapp Block. A major renovation of the main building by Scott Simons Architects was completed in 2010.