| Summary: | The institution that would come to be known as Auburn University’s first library operated out of three rooms on the second floor of William J. Samford Hall. These rooms quickly became overcrowded with an excessive amount of volumes. In 1908, Andrew Carnegie provided an endowment of $30,000 to allow the institution to build a much-needed stand-alone library. Nathaniel C. Curtis, the chair of Alabama Polytechnic Institute’s Architectural Department, designed the new library, which opened on January 11, 1909, and boasted a 60,000-volume capacity. In 1940, Auburn’s Board of Trustees allocated funds to enlarge the Carnegie Library, effectively doubling its volume capacity and adding two new reading rooms. In the early 1960s, Auburn University began building a massive new library building. On November 5, 1963, the building was dedicated and the institution’s library officially moved from the Carnegie building to the new facility. Auburn University tapped the old Carnegie Library to house student financial services and redubbed the building Mary Martin Hall in honor of Auburn’s librarian from 1918 to 1949. Mary Martin Hall still stands at 211 West Thach Avenue, Auburn University.
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