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104 candles for Carnegie Library
Can't get enough books
Sidney L. Davis/Tribune-Review
1 p.m.: Banjo Music, John Chasky
1:15 p.m.: Children's choir, Solid Rock Foundation Ministries
1:30 p.m.: Children's story time, Molly Stockdale
1:45 p.m.: Ragtime piano, Ray Ryan
2:15 p.m.: Southern cooking demonstration, Crate Kitchenware and Cooking School
2:45 p.m.: Guitar music, Ed Sartori
3 p.m: Dramatic readings, Stage 62
3:15 p.m: Children's story time, Molly Stockdale
3:30 p.m: Banjo Music, John Chasky
3:45 p.m.: Southern cooking demonstration - Crate
4:15 p.m.: Ragtime piano, Ray Ryan
4:30 p.m.: Dramatic reading, Stage 62
4:45 p.m.: Guitar music, Ed Sartori
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"We are happier than we've been in a long time on this 104th birthday," Forbes said, referring to the library, which opened in May 1901 and is undergoing a $8.6 million renovation. A fund-raising campaign has raised nearly $2.7 million of that since 2001. The fundraising is still under way.
The first phase of the renovation project, done by Cranberry-based Landau Building Co., was completed just in time for the library's birthday celebration this weekend. The renovation work, which began last fall, will be unveiled to the public Saturday.
This phase included installing restrooms on all three floors, a new second floor reception hall and a kitchenette. Mechanical, electrical and plumbing upgrades and accessibility improvements have also been finished.
A shaft was dug for an elevator, which is expected to be installed in July.
Weather proofing the building will be undertaken in the second phase of the project, and interior improvements will be done in the final phase.
The rust-brick structure, which sits on a hillside overlooking the borough's business district, is one of the four original Carnegie libraries in the Pittsburgh region and the only one anywhere allowed to bear the full name of the 19th century steel magnate and philanthropist.
The building remains fully functional. It houses not only the library but also a 780-seat music hall said to be acoustically perfect and patterned after Carnegie Hall in New York City. The Civil War Room on the upper level of the library has thousands of artifacts, including muskets, hand grenades, documents of battles and flags. War veterans met there for several years after the library opened. The library also has a gymnasium, dance studio and a lecture hall.
Along with the birthday celebration and renovation tour, the library on Saturday will host "Taste of the South: A Celebration of Southern Culture," the first program in the new reception area.
The program is part of the Allegheny County Library Association's "One Book, One Community" project, a national initiative to get people reading and talking about the same book. A variety of programming is centered around Fannie Flagg's Pulitzer Prize nominated novel "Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe."
The program and birthday celebration will include Ragtime piano performances, a gospel choir performance, storytelling, children's crafts and demonstrations by African American quilters, Forbes said.
"What is happening on Saturday is an example of the kinds of programs we will be doing. It is a taste of things to come," Forbes said.
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