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Lewis and Clark Branch Library

Demolished
  • Modern Movement
  • Identity of Building/Site
  • History of Building/Site

Lewis and Clark Branch Library

Site overview

The Lewis and Clark Branch Library, completed in 1963, was once the pride of the St. Louis County Library system. Designed by architect Frederick Dunn, FAIA with stunning stained glass windows by master artist Robert Harmon, it was constructed as part of a progressive mid-century building program which sought to re-envision libraries in the postwar era. The steel-framed building was rectangular in plan with a shed roof rising from its rear. Its charcoal gray brick base gave way to aluminum and glass curtain walls wrapping around its main and side facades to optimize natural light. Set into a sloping site, it presented a one-story front to the street with its basement level visible to the rear. The main reading room–virtually free of vertical supports–and library offices were on the main floor, with closed stacks, a 250-seat auditorium, and two meeting rooms below. Upon its completion the highly functional building was elegant in its simplicity, with its sole decoration focused on stunning stained glass windows by artist Robert Harmon. Despite a local grassroots effort to preserve the building, the 1963 building was demolished in 2015 and replaced with a new library facility.

Awards

Advocacy

Citation of Merit

Civic

2015

Location

9909 Lewis and Clark Boulevard
St. Louis, MO, 63136

Country

US

Case Study House No. 21

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Designer(s)

Other designers

Stained glass: Robert Harmon

Related News

A Bitter-Sweet Ending for the Campaign to Save the Lewis & Clark Branch Library

Newsletter, Advocacy, chapter, Library, St. Louis

May 11, 2015

The International Style in St. Louis Commercial Architecture

June 01, 2015
Commission

1960

Completion

1963

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