By Judy Carnick
I’m thinking (as I often do these days) of our Carnegie Library.
Did you know that less than half of the 30-plus Carnegie Libraries that were built in Colorado are in existence today?
Did you know that, originally, Manitou Springs’ Police Department was located in the Manitou Springs Carnegie Library? The Carnegie Foundation found out and insisted that the purpose of the library was to be a library and the Police Department had to find an office somewhere else!
Did you know that the original floors of our Carnegie Library were corkwood? The same wood used on the Hiawatha Gardens Dance Hall floor?
These are just some of the quirky facts about our Carnegie Library.
Today, our library stands empty and silent. No adults or kids come in for help locating books. No kids spend hours reading upside-down on a chair. No one uses the computers or the creaky stairs.
No whispers except those looking for the children who uttered them. No smiling librarians who cheerfully tell everyone how they can access everything the Pikes Peak Library District has to offer.
There is simply an empty old building full of hope.
Hope that you and your family will remember all the warm wood, the tiny bathrooms, the library dog programs, the sunshine begging to come in and make you even cozier.
Then there was the wonderful smell of books. Books old. Books new. Big books with tiny fingerprints of jelly and snacks left on them. Books with the page corners turned down. Books that opened worlds for readers for more than a century. Books that helped someone build shelves or change the oil in the car or manage finances or bake a wonderful yummy something.
Hope that you, your family and your friends will join those of us who miss having our own special library.
Hope that you understand that the poor building was deteriorating and begging for help. The Americans with Disabilities Act closure was just a sign of the need for major expansion and renovations. Hope we will join together to update our library so it is proud and ready to serve for the next 110 years as well as it did for the first 110 years.
Won’t you join us?
- Volunteer. (judy@thecarnicks.com)
- Make your tax deductible donation at SaveOurCarnegie.com
- Write a check to City of Manitou Springs, 606 Manitou Ave, Manitou Springs, CO 80829
Please include Save Our Carnegie on the memo line.
Can you hear the whispers around the old vacant windows? Those whispers are thanking you!