HISTORY

Minneapolis Anthenaeum

The history of the Minneapolis Athenaeum, the first public lending library in the state of Minnesota, is told primarily from the perspective of four 19th century individuals. Their inspiration and effort created and guided the athenaeum from its inception in 1859 until its consolidation with the new Minneapolis Public Library in 1889.

Two of these individuals are remembered, Thomas Hale Williams (1814-1901), the first librarian of the Minneapolis Athenaeum, who provided space in his Minneapolis bookstore for the Athenaeum’s library in its early years. Kirby Spencer, a dentist whose place of birth was not known, was probably 65 when he died in 1870. His modest financial bequest to the Minneapolis Athenaeum assured its future financial stability.

The other two were respected public figures: Thomas Barlow Walker (1840-1928) was a Minneapolis businessman, philanthropist, and art collector whose vision and efforts nurtured the growth of the Minneapolis Athenaeum. The last was George Herbert Putnam (1840-1955), the third librarian of the Minneapolis Anthenaeum, who helped prepare for and guide the merger of the Antheaeum with the newly established Minneapolis Public Library. Putnam later became the Librarian of Congress.

The St. Anthony Library Association was organized as early as 1850, but apparently, it never established a free library. W.W.Wales did set up a small circulating library in his St. Anthony bookstore in 1854, “on the most reasonable terms” these were two antecedents of the Athenaeum”

Bayard Taylor, a well-known American traveler, wrote and lectured during the 1850s and 1860s. In the spring of 1859 he announced that on a forthcoming tour of the Northwest, including Minneapolis, he would speak before any literary association that would pay his expenses and provide a small honorarium. In response, a small group of men met on May 16 to organize a library association so that they might invite Taylor to lecture.

On May 18, the group met again and adopted a short constitution for “the Young Men’s Literary Association of Minneapolis” Taylor’s lecture, given on the night of May 25 at the Methodist church on Oregon Street, was a financial success. The proceeds provided the first funding for the new association. At the subsequent meetings in July 1859, a new constitution and bylaws were adopted under the name “the Minneapolis Athenaeum." By August 1859, its library was open for business.

Under its constitution and bylaws, the Minneapolis Athenaeum, a joint-stock company was a private subscription library for adult men and women. A tax of $2.00 per share was levied annually on each shareholder. Shareholders initially could use the reading room at any time, and for a small fee borrow two books at a time.