Ottendorfer Library
🏢 New York Public Library · East Village, New York
Ottendorfer Library
Opened December 7, 1884 as a gift from German immigrant publisher Oswald Ottendorfer, this East Village branch is the oldest in Manhattan — a New York City landmark whose terracotta facade still greets neighbors on Second Avenue as it did 140 years ago.
🕑 Library Hours
| Monday | Closed |
| Tuesday | 11am–7pm |
| Wednesday | 11am–7pm |
| Thursday | 11am–7pm |
| Friday | 10am–5pm |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
Hours may vary on holidays; check the library site before visiting.
📍 Location, Contact & Directions
Address: 135 Second Avenue, new-york, NY 10003
Phone: (212) 674-0947
Website: nypl.org
Plus Code: 87G8P2H6+HV (new-york, NY)
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📖 About Ottendorfer Library
The Ottendorfer Library at 135 Second Avenue is the oldest branch library in Manhattan and one of the earliest buildings in New York City constructed expressly as a public library. It opened on December 7, 1884, funded by Oswald Ottendorfer — proprietor of the New-Yorker Staats-Zeitung and a prominent figure in the German immigrant community of Kleindeutschland ("Little Germany"), which then counted more than 150,000 residents in the East Village. His wife Anna provided the land and personally chose the architect, William Schickel, who designed the building in a neo-Italian Renaissance style ornamented with Philadelphia pressed-brick facades and distinctive terracotta putti. The library originally held 8,000 volumes — half in German, half in English — to help new arrivals learn and assimilate. After operating as the second branch of the New York Free Circulating Library, it merged into the New York Public Library system in 1901. The exterior was designated a New York City landmark in 1977 (the interior in 1981), and a $2.1 million restoration completed around 2001 installed an elevator, air-conditioning and expanded reading areas while preserving the 19th-century fabric. Today the Ottendorfer serves the diverse East Village community with children's story times, teen programs, a STEAM Discovery Kit lending collection, the monthly National Writers Union open-mic series, and NYPL's personalized "Shelf Help" reading-recommendation service.
⭐ What makes this library special
- Manhattan's oldest branch library, opened December 7, 1884 — a gift of German immigrant publisher Oswald Ottendorfer and his wife Anna
- NYC landmark (exterior 1977, interior 1981) and National Register of Historic Places; designed by William Schickel in neo-Italian Renaissance style with ornate terracotta putti
- STEAM Discovery Kits available to borrow — kids and tweens explore robotics, circuitry, microbiology and coding with hands-on kits to take home
- Monthly National Writers Union open-mic series held on-site (third Saturday of the month), plus a virtual open-mic every second Thursday
- NYPL "Shelf Help" service: tell a librarian your reading tastes and receive five hand-picked books sent to this branch for pickup
📱 Digital Resources — Free with Your Library Card
Ottendorfer cardholders access free e-books, research tools and statewide New York resources through NYPL:
📚 Services
- Children's floor with dedicated story-hour room (six weekly story times)
- STEAM Discovery Kit lending (robotics, circuitry, microbiology, coding kits to take home)
- NYPL Shelf Help personalized reading-recommendation service
- Public computers, printing and free Wi-Fi
- Meeting and program space for community events
- Multilingual collections (Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Polish, French and English)
- NYPL digital card — access e-books and databases remotely with no physical visit required
🎸 Programs
- Six weekly children's story times
- National Writers Union open-mic series (third Saturday, monthly) and virtual open-mic (second Thursday)
- STEAM Discovery Days for kids and tweens
- Teen programs and after-school drop-in
- Book discussions and adult cultural programming
- Summer Reading Challenge
📍 Nearby Libraries in Lower Manhattan
Distances are approximate straight-line miles from this library.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Oswald Ottendorfer and why did he build this library?
Oswald Ottendorfer was a German immigrant who became proprietor of the New-Yorker Staats-Zeitung, the leading German-language newspaper in 19th-century New York. In the 1880s the East Village neighborhood, then called Kleindeutschland or "Little Germany," was home to more than 150,000 German-descent residents. Ottendorfer and his wife Anna funded the library — Anna also chose architect William Schickel — to give their community access to books in both German and English and to support assimilation into American civic life. The library opened December 7, 1884 with 8,000 volumes, half in each language.
Is the Ottendorfer Library building a historic landmark?
Yes. The exterior of the Ottendorfer branch was designated an individual New York City landmark on September 20, 1977, and the interior received landmark status on August 11, 1981 — making it one of a small number of library interiors protected citywide. The building was also listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The neo-Italian Renaissance facade features ornate terracotta putti crafted from Philadelphia pressed brick, a design unique in the city. A $2.1 million restoration completed around 2001 added an elevator and modern systems while preserving the 19th-century architecture.
What are the Ottendorfer Library's current hours?
The branch is open Tuesday through Thursday 11 am–7 pm and Friday 10 am–5 pm. It is closed Monday, Saturday and Sunday. Hours are set by the New York Public Library and may vary on public holidays; check nypl.org/locations/ottendorfer for the latest schedule.
What is the STEAM Discovery Kit program at Ottendorfer?
STEAM Discovery Kits are hands-on learning kits that kids and tweens can borrow from the library and take home. Each kit contains tools, toys and books centered on a STEM or STEAM theme — such as robotics, circuitry, microbiology or coding — letting children explore science and engineering concepts outside the classroom. The kits are free to borrow with an NYPL library card, just like a book.
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