Draft:Rochester Public Library

Early libraries

The history of libraries in Rochester dates to the 1820s with the formation of literary social clubs. The Rochester Athenaeum was founded in 1828, followed by the Mechanics Literary Association in 1836. These organizations sponsored book collections that were often made available to the public. The two groups merged in 1847 to form the Athenaeum and Mechanics Association, whose collection grew to several thousand volumes before the organization went bankrupt in 1877.^[3]

Mortimer Reynolds, a prominent Rochester businessman, purchased the collection virtually intact. The Reynolds Library operated as a subscription library until it merged with the Rochester Public Library in the 1930s.^[3]

Establishment of the public library

In 1911, Mayor Hiram Edgerton signed an amendment to the city charter establishing the Rochester Public Library. The library system was organized on a branch plan, with branches proposed immediately. The Exposition Park Branch, located in what is today Edgerton Park, opened in 1912 as the first branch of the Rochester Public Library.^[3]

Also in 1911, Rochester resident Morton W. Rundel died and bequeathed $400,000 to the city for a library and fine arts building. Legal disputes among Rundel's heirs delayed use of the funds until 1931.^[3]

Budget problems and World War I postponed construction of a central library facility. In 1926, the Central Library opened in the former Kimball Tobacco Factory building at the corner of Court and Exchange Streets, which had been converted to a City Hall Annex.^[3]

Rundel Memorial Library

Construction of a permanent central library building began in December 1933. The Reynolds Library agreed to merge its collections into the new building, with the stipulation that a Reynolds Reference Library would be maintained. The Rundel bequest, after accruing interest, had grown to approximately one million dollars, supplemented by a Public Works Administration grant.^[3]

The local architectural firm of Gordon & Kaelber designed the building, which was constructed between 1934 and 1936. The Rundel Memorial Building was dedicated on October 4, 1936. Built above the Johnson and Seymour millrace along the Genesee River, the building integrates Beaux-Arts planning with Art Deco detailing. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.^[3]

Modern expansion

In 1997, the Bausch & Lomb Public Library Building opened across the street from the Rundel Building, expanding the Central Library campus.^[4] Together, both buildings at 115 South Avenue serve as the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County.^[1]

In 2024, the library received $435,000 from the New York State Aid for Library Construction program to replace the Rundel Building's north elevator, along with $171,190 for roof replacement at the Charlotte branch.^[5]

Local History and Genealogy Division

The Local History and Genealogy Division, located on the second floor of the Rundel Building, holds the largest collection of materials about the history of Rochester and the Genesee Valley in the region. The collection includes more than 10,000 photographs and postcards, 3,000 maps, 2,000 school yearbooks, 350 scrapbooks, and city directories dating from 1827.^[6]

Notable holdings include original issues of The North Star, the anti-slavery newspaper published by Frederick Douglass in Rochester, records of the Rochester Women's Educational and Industrial Union, and personal papers of Susan B. Anthony and Nathaniel Rochester.^[6]

The division publishes Rochester History, a journal covering the history of Rochester and western New York. First published in January 1939 by City Historian Blake McKelvey, the journal continues as a biannual publication.^[7]

Archive of Black History and Culture

In 2024, the library launched the Archive of Black History and Culture, a collection documenting African American history in Rochester and the surrounding region. The archive includes materials related to Frederick Douglass's time in Rochester, the Underground Railroad, and the city's civil rights history.^[8]