page_title: Frank Melville Jr. Memorial Library
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Frank Melville Jr. Memorial Library / History
caption_attribution_description: English: North Reading Room at the Melville Library, Stony Brook University
context_page_description: The Frank Melville Jr. Memorial Library is the main library at Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, New York. It is named for the father of philanthropist Ward Melville, who donated 400 acres of land and money to establish Stony Brook University in 1957.
context_section_description: Originally constructed in 1962 as a modest sized three-story building, it was renovated almost immediately and greatly expanded and re-dedicated in 1967-1971. It holds more than 2.1 million bound volumes and over four million rolls of microfilm. The library is a member of the Association of Research Libraries, a consortium of the top 120 research libraries in the country. The library has a Special Collections Department which houses over 16,000 rare books, 800 antique and hand-drawn maps, and over 150 collections, including the papers of Senator Jacob K. Javits, the Environmental Defense Archive, and the William Butler Yeats Microfilmed Manuscripts Collection.
  In 2016 the North and Central Reading Rooms were renovated and modernized with new furniture and technology improvements to become a "knowledge commons." The redesign included adding new independent study areas, more natural light, better acoustics, new flooring, more electrical outlets, and new computer workstations.
caption: North Reading Room in 2019
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