page_title: William Oxley Thompson Memorial Library
section_title: 2009 renovation and expansion
hierarchical_section_title: William Oxley Thompson Memorial Library / History / 2009 renovation and expansion
caption_attribution_description: English: The Thompson Library on the campus of The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio (United States).
context_page_description: The William Oxley Thompson Memorial Library is the main library at Ohio State University's Columbus campus. It is the university's largest library and houses its main stacks, special collections, rare books and manuscripts, and many departmental subject libraries. The library was originally built in 1912, and was renovated in 1951, 1977, and 2009. It is named in honor of the university's fifth president, William Oxley Thompson.
context_section_description: The most recent renovation to the Thompson Library was a $108.7 million project that began on January 10, 2007 and was completed in the summer of 2009. It was designed by the Gund Partnership with Acock Associates Architects as the architect of record. The library's original east facade and Grand Reading Room were restored, while the 1977 west wing addition and 1951 north and south extensions were demolished. A new 91,000 sq ft (8,500 m²) west wing was built, bringing the library floor space to 306,000 sq ft (28,400 m²). Nearly 1000 seats were added to the library, but shelf space was decreased, so many volumes were moved to other locations. The renovation focused on opening up the library space to natural light and creating a more coherent space. Features added in the renovation include a new West Atrium and Buckeye Reading Room, glass walls for the lower floors of the 1951 book tower, exhibition space for the library's special collections, a café, and a ground-floor east-west passageway that extends the Oval's "Long Walk" through the building. The renovation was opened to the public on September 24, 2009.
  Various art pieces were included in the restoration. The written-word piece VERSE was installed on the floor of the Buckeye Reading Room, and 49 metal plates called "Foundation Stones" were set throughout the library, featuring engravings in a wide range of writing and graphic notation systems. Additionally, a new replica of the Winged Victory of Samothrace statue was commissioned and installed in the Grand Reading Room to replace an earlier replica from 1913 which had fallen into disrepair and was removed in 1959.
  The 2009 renovation received several awards, including a 2009 AIA Columbus Merit Award, a 2009 ABC Excellence in Construction Eagle Award, a 2009 Columbus Landmarks Foundation James B. Recchie Design Award, a 2010 SCUP/AIA-CAE Excellence in Architecture Renovation/Adaptive Reuse Special Citation, and a 2011 AIA/ALA Library Building Award.
caption: Buckeye Reading Room, part of the 2009 renovation
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