🏢 Brooklyn Public Library — Brooklyn, New York

Central Library (Grand Army Plaza)

Rising over Grand Army Plaza like a gilded open book, this Art Deco landmark is the monumental flagship of the Brooklyn Public Library system.

📖 About Central Library (Grand Army Plaza)

Brooklyn's Central Library was formally dedicated on March 29, 1941, capping a decades-long saga that began with Raymond F. Almirall's abandoned Beaux-Arts scheme and was reimagined in 1935 by architects Alfred Morton Githens and Francis Keally into the sleek Art Deco form seen today. Viewed from above, the building famously fans open like a book, its curved wings embracing the corner of Flatbush Avenue and Eastern Parkway across from Prospect Park. The 50-foot entrance pylons carry gilded bas-reliefs by sculptor C. Paul Jennewein, while a 15-panel bronze entrance screen by Thomas Hudson Jones depicts figures from American literature. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the building in 1997 and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. Home to more than 1.7 million items, the Central Library serves as the system's principal research and lending hub, and a multi-phase interior renovation begun in the early 2020s has been modernizing its public spaces.

⭐ What makes this branch special

• Art Deco flagship whose footprint fans open like a giant book
• 50-foot gilded entrance pylons by sculptor C. Paul Jennewein
• Bronze entrance screen of literary characters by Thomas Hudson Jones
• NYC landmark (1997) and National Register listing (2002)

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❓ Frequently Asked Questions