{"nrhp_refnum":"72001100","name":"Cambria Public Library Building","other_names":["Carnegie Public Library"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"304 Washington St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Johnstown","county":"Cambria County","state":"PA","lat":40.32792038400004,"lon":-78.92053868999994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1972-06-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story brick public library building in Johnstown, Cambria County, Pennsylvania, built in 1890-1 in the French Gothic style with Victorian-era ornament.","why_significant":"The library arose directly from the Johnstown Flood of 1889, which destroyed the original library, and was funded by Andrew Carnegie together with the Cambria Iron Company. It is cited as an example of Victorian architecture with massive styling and ornamental features, and it retains much original interior woodwork and railings. It also served as a long-running cultural center for the town.","narrative":"Built in 1890-1 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the Cambria Public Library is a three-story brick building in the French Gothic style. It rises two stories before a tile roof with four dormers on each side and clustered chimneys. Its recessed double entrance sits behind a flat-topped opening, and high, narrow sash windows have cut stone lintels. A datestone above the first floor records the benefactor and year of erection. The library was created after the Johnstown Flood of 1889 destroyed the original building, and Andrew Carnegie and the Cambria Iron Company financed its construction and maintenance until 1930. It is regarded as a representative example of Victorian ornamental massing and retains much of its original interior woodwork and railings. For many years it housed a lecture forum, a gymnasium for an athletic association, a state library district center, a government documents repository, and an auditorium seating 300. It was partly damaged again in the 1936 flood and ceased operating as a library in late 1971.","period_of_significance":"1890-1","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"French Gothic","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The library ceased to function as a library in late 1971; the document does not describe later use.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:30.428123-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/72001100.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72001100/60391ceea6-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72001100/60391ceea6-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Jet Lowe, HABS photographer","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1st_Carnegie_Library_Johnstown_PA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jet Lowe, HABS photographer</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1st_Carnegie_Library_Johnstown_PA.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"92000941","name":"Downtown Johnstown Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/pennsylvania/downtown-johnstown-historic-district-92000941/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71995990","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnstown_Flood_Museum","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5025267"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/cambria-county/cambria-public-library-building-72001100/"}