Historic Reading Room
The ASM Library is
located in the historic reading room of the University of Arizona's former
Main Library. The article that follows gives a description of the building
a few years after construction was completed in 1925.
University of Arizona Library
by Estelle L. Luttrell, Librarian
The Library Journal, November 15, 1927
The new library building at the University of Arizona at Tucson, was partly
occupied two years ago. The decoration of the main reading room was finished
and the equipment procured last spring, heating apparatus for the stacks
was not installed until the summer just past and the dedication exercises
were held in the out-door reading room and patio on October 23.
Lyman & Place, local architects, designed the building which is modern
Renaissance in style. It is of steel frame construction, with reinforced
concrete floors and roof slabs, the latter covered with Spanish tile in harmony
with the other buildings of the University. It is a three story building
of red, rug-faced brick with terra cotta trim. It covers a ground area of
one hundred and ninety-five by one hundred and ten feet, and cost about $175,000
with equipment. The woodwork thruout the interior is of Mexican amapa.
Three arched doorways open into the main lobby from the front. The side
walls of the lobby are finished in Italian Tavernelle claire marble with
Tavernelle rose base, the floor and stairways in pink Tennessee marble tile.
Two exhibition cases form insets in the front wall. To the right of the entrance
is the reserved book room seating one hundred twenty-five readers; this in
turn opens into an outdoor reading room, which provides for thirty additional
readers. This room is well adapted to the needs of an Arizona climate, is
used thruout the year, and is unique of its kind in college libraries. On
the left of the entrance is a large room temporarily assigned to the law
library, but intended to supply further space for the reserved books as the
demand increases. Two rooms assigned for the present as class rooms complete
the ground floor. In the center is the stairway leading to the loan desk
and the main reading room.
The main reading room, one hundred and twenty-five by forty feet
is especially inviting with its nine large arched windows which look to the
south, framing pictures of the surrounding mountains; its woodwork in dark
tinted Mexican amapa and beamed ceiling decorated in dull, rich colors suggest
an Italian court room of the sixteenth century. Book-cases around the room
will shelve about eight thousand volumes. Opening from the eastern end of
this room is the special reading room. The periodical room opens from the
west end. Further expansion of space for periodicals is provided for in the
use of the entire west end of the second floor for this purpose. The card
catalog is in a room to the right of the delivery desk and near the reading
room. The delivery desk, also of Tavernelle marble, is opposite the entrance
into the reading room, with doors into the stacks directly in the rear. The
administrative offices and divisions for the staff are at the north-east
of this same floor, the the catalog room being immediately above the receiving
room in the basement and connected therewith by an electric elevator. The
basement containing three rooms and a fire-proof vault, provides an unpacking
room, storage for duplicates, and a room for the ventilating apparatus. On
the third floor are the staff rooms and fifteen seminar rooms with shelves
for books especially assigned to students doing advanced work. The steel
stacks have five tiers connected by an electric elevator and afford space
for the shelving of 225,000 books with ample ground space at the North for
a stack extension. The floors of the stack are of Vermont marble, with alcoves
on each tier. On the fifth tier are locked cases for valuable books, and
a map case. Label holders project from the stacks into the aisles for the
easy location of books. The windows lighting the alcoves down each side are
of wire plate glass. Automatic fire-doors safeguard against the approach
of fire from the interior of the building.
The library houses at present about sixty-nine thousand volumes, and contains
a special collection of Arizonianna and of books by Mexican writers.
Technical equipment is provided by the Library Bureau and the stacks are
by Snead and Company.
