{"nrhp_refnum":"07001452","name":"Barber, Aaron, Memorial Building","other_names":["Avon Free Library"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"143 Genesee St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Avon","county":"Livingston County","state":"NY","lat":42.90971243900003,"lon":-77.74741180599995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2008-01-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-story brick library building at 143 Genesee Street in the Village of Avon, Livingston County, New York, built in 1927-28 and home to the Avon Free Library. It was designed by the Rochester firm Arnold & Stern.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is an intact and distinguished example of Georgian Revival civic architecture in Avon. It is modeled on southern tidewater public buildings, such as small Virginia brick court houses and churches, rather than the New England models common earlier in the Colonial Revival. It was built with a bequest from benefactor Aaron Barber III and still serves as a library and community center.","narrative":"Built in 1927-28 on Genesee Street in Avon, New York, the Aaron Barber Memorial Building houses the Avon Free Library. It is a rectangular, five-by-three-bay brick structure with a hipped roof, modillion cornice, round-arched windows with twelve-over-twelve sash, and a pedimented Georgian entrance with Roman Ionic columns. Inside, a large open reading room centers on an oversized Georgian Revival fireplace and overmantel holding a portrait of the benefactor. Aaron Barber III, a prominent local farmer and civic leader, left the library his house and a large endowment when he died in 1925. The house was demolished and the new building opened in April 1928. The Rochester firm of Arnold and Stern designed it, drawing on southern tidewater court houses and Anglican churches in Virginia rather than New England models. It is valued as an intact example of Georgian Revival civic architecture and continues to serve as a library and community center.","period_of_significance":"1928","architect_builder":"Arnold & Stern","architectural_style":"Colonial Revival (Georgian Revival)","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Continues in its original use as an active library and community center.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:53.62523-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/07001452.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07001452/41f1017aef-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07001452/41f1017aef-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Pubdog (talk)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aaron_Barber_Memorial_Building_Aug_10.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Pubdog (talk)</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aaron_Barber_Memorial_Building_Aug_10.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100007683","name":"Avon Village Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/new-york/avon-village-historic-district-100007683/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75318612","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Barber_Memorial_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3844097"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/livingston-county/barber-aaron-memorial-building-07001452/"}