A Brief History Of The New York Public Library

Even if you’ve never been to New York City, you likely know The New York Public Library from the opening of the movie Ghostbusters and countless other depictions in books and film. The New York Public Library, with its lions, columns, and pigeon-covered steps in Bryant Park is itself iconic.

Created according to the will of John Jacob Astor, one of America’s first multi-millionaires, the NYPL opened as the Astor Library in 1854 but was initially unpopular with the public, serving mostly as a reference library. It wasn’t until 1870 that the State Legislature of New York City incorporated the existing Lenox Library and moved locales to Fifth Avenue, while also acquiring the collection’s crown jewel, the first Gutenberg Bible in the New World. From these humble beginnings, the NYPL would grow to become the home of the third-largest book collection in the world, with nearly 53 million individual items, topped only by the Library of Congress and the British Library.

The original president of the library’s board of trustees was none other than The Legend of Sleepy Hollow author Washington Irving, who oversaw the incipient collection until his death in 1859. A series of mergers occurred over the next 30 years.

In 1901, Andrew Carnegie donated $5.2 million to construction costs for the city’s new branch libraries and donated much of his private collection as well. More high-profile purchases followed, including the acquisition (in exchange for gold) of the entire library of Russia’s Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich after the fall of his nephew, the tsar. The library became instrumental in the world wars, because its individual collection of maps supplied unprecedented resources to U.S. Army generals.

The current NYPL building opened in 1911 — after a competition between the city’s architects for the final design — in a ceremony during which President Taft read the declaration. E.C. Potter, the designer behind the stone lions (named Patience and Fortitude), had previously designed equestrian statues of General Ulysses S. Grant in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, and statues of George Washington in Paris and Chicago. A National Historic Landmark by 1965, the library underwent ongoing renovation and expansions until 2007.

As one of the only libraries maintained by private donations, as opposed to government subsidies, the NYPL has had its share of controversies over the years. In 2011, for example, the library’s board announced plans to dismantle and digitize much of its collection, shipping excess books to New Jersey and elsewhere. The massive unpopularity of this announcement, however, led to an about-face, and the plans were abandoned. Still, several collections have suffered from consolidation programs, including the elimination of Asian, Slavic, Baltic, and Middle East divisions of study.

Current holdings of the NYPL include the original Winnie the Pooh stuffed doll, along with his friends from the Hundred Acre Wood (save Roo, long since lost by the real Christopher Robin). The system maintains branches in every borough except Brooklyn, which has its own library system, and maintains a digital collection of over 700,000 images.

The NYPL remains dedicated to community outreach and maintains specialty services for immigrants, including language classes and acclimatization coaching. For the breadth of its collections, sheer beauty, and general atmosphere, The New York Public Library is very nearly unrivaled, and its easy recognition has made it a national landmark equal to the Empire State Building or the Statue of Liberty.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.