Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1913-12-19
OUR PUBLIC LIBRARY.
BY MRS. KATE MAcFARLANs

the town would pledge itself tC
raise ten per cent of the mount
annually as a maintenance
fund. The generosity of Mr..
Carnegie was equalled by that Of
the Church Of Jesus Christ OF
Latter-day Saints, which months
before this time had given to
the city a piece of ground LOOK
100 feet square, lying north OF
the Tabernacle. to be used for q
library site.
The next thing was to get the
building process under way.
During the Carnegie negotia-
tions, the architects. Watkins
& Birch Of Salt Lake City, had
been employed to cooperate
with the local library board in
dra wing up plans for a $40, 900
building, and after careful
study and revision a plan was
finally evolved which proved so
satisfactory that the Carnegie
Corporation made a special re-
quest for a copy. saying that 1t
was admirably arranged to give
a maximum of effective accom-
modating for the money expend-
ed. Bids were called fos in the
early spring, and from the re-
sponses that came from con-
tractors all over the state, it be-
came evident that owing to the
distance from railroad and fac
tory and the consequent high
material, it would be impossible
to put up the building according
to the architects plans and speci-
fications and keep within the
$40, 000 limit, To use material
so cheap that permanency would
be sacrificed was out of the ques-
ton. and to go to the labor and
expense of drawing up new
plans which might be rejected
by the Carnegie people. and so
run the risk of losing a share
of the fund for which towns
and cities all over our own state
land evsry.Other wais-clamoring.
ana which could not last indefi-
nitely. seemed equally out of the
question. What was to be done?
A mass meeting was called and
the matter laid before the citi-
zens. with the result that they
agreed it would be better for
them to pay the additional cost
and lave the building put up
according to the accepted plans.
The contract for the erection
of the building was let to the
lowest bidder, Fredrickson &
Son of Mani. for considera-
tion of So, 450 not including the
plumbing contract which was
given to A. B. Utley of Cedar
City for 81. $50. A list of addi-
tional expenses are: cesspool,
$3.50; architects fee, $3.50;
superintendent salary $3.50; in
surance, $66; drains, $50; extra
foundation 500; galvanized iron
covering for deck SOL; Spanish
tile shingles. S3l7; these last
two items of extra expense
necessary because of the location
of the building in the fire dis
trict.) AS will be seen, a total
of Sill, 942 is had. and in addi-
tion to these will be the cost of
the furniture, electrical fixtures,
hardware and some minor items
of expense. The library is a
two-story building of pressed
brick and cement, rectangular
in shape with an outside meas
urements of 93x72 feet. The
lines of the building are simple
and good, and a look of dignity is
added by a magnificent flight of
fourteen cement steps each thir-
teen feet long and fianked with
massive balustrades. that lead
up to the glass vestibule on the
library floor.
The basement is occupied by
the lecture room which is 30x40
it. exclusive of the set-in stage ;
the rest of the basement Isl
taken up by the hall. toilets. and
boiler, fuel, and store rooms.
The library proper consists eff