Brooklyn Public Library - Central Branch

The building’s history dates to 1889, when the Brooklyn Park Commission was authorized to select a location for the library. In 1912, ground was broken on architect Raymond F. Almirall’s imposing Beaux-Arts design, but construction slowed and eventually ceased in the following years. Construction resumed on a reimagined Central Library in 1935, and the building finally opened to the public on February 1, 1941. The library’s design evokes an open book, with its spine on Grand Army Plaza and two wings opening like pages onto Eastern Parkway and Flatbush Avenue.