The Dublin Carnegie

Carnegie funded 1,681 public library buildings in the United States between 1889 and 1923.

In 1903, Carnegie donated $10,000 towards the construction of Dublin's Carnegie Library with the condition that the City of Dublin provide at least $1,000 annually to operate the library and that the community match Carnegie's $10,000 gift.

Bruce, Morgan, and Dillon, a design firm who completed construction of the courthouse nine years earlier, crafted the layout of the library. Leading contractor of the time, John A. Kelley, constructed the building, removing the old school and Masonic lodge from the triangular lot at the intersection of Bellevue and Academy avenues and capping the artesian Robinson's Well. As luck would have it, Kelley's bid matched Carnegie's gift of $10,000.

Construction of the Carnegie Library began in the latter part of 1903. By May 1904, crews hoisted the two 3,200 pound entryway columns into place.

Completed in mid-September of 1904, the library opened on November 7, 1904.

Strict regulations, including a written application confirmed by two prominent citizens of Dublin, were required for anyone wishing to check out books from the new library. The library was open Mon-Sat. from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

Books for the new library came from private donations, including several hundred from Judge Peyton Wade's collection of thousands. 

One of the first fundraising events for the book fund featured Professor William Irving Fayssoux, a clairvoyant and psychic. At three o'clock, Fayssoux blindfolded himself, and drove madly and daringly over the main streets of Dublin, searching for a letter which had been hidden by a prominent Dubliner. Whether he actually found the letter remains a mystery.

By 1905, the library also housed a war museum featuring artifacts of the Civil and Revolutionary Wars along with some Indian relics. In 1912, a monument to the soldiers of the Confederacy was unveiled on the grounds.

One morning in June of 1912, librarian Miss Lily Hightower was working in her office when she decided to leave her chair for a few moments. Suddenly a hundred-pound chunk of ceiling plaster fell directly on the chair she had just vacated. The plaster damage led to the installation of the pressed metal ceiling seen today.

By the 1960s the City and County had built a larger, modern library, leaving the historic building to deteriorate.

The Carnegie was saved by the Dublin-Laurens Historical Society, whose efforts in the late 1970s stabilized the building and led to its 35+ year tenure as the home of the Dublin-Laurens Museum.

In 2014, the local Museum moved to its new location on historic Bellevue Avenue. The Dublin Downtown Development Authority, with financial assistance from local donors and the City of Dublin, performed a historically-sensitive renovation of the building. The Carnegie re-opened in early 2015 as a mixed-use art, culture, and event center.

The Dublin Carnegie is now one of only three surviving Carnegie libraries in the state of Georgia listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and still in its original form.

Georgia Council for the Arts empowers the arts industry in Georgia and artists around the state to cultivate healthy, vibrant communities that are rich in civic participation, cultural development and economic prosperity. As a division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, Georgia Council for the Arts provides grant funding, programs and services statewide that support this vital industry, preserve our cultural heritage and create increased access to high quality arts experiences.

The Georgia Humanities Council is a nonprofit organization working to ensure that humanities and culture remain an integral part of the lives of Georgians.