{"nrhp_refnum":"73000709","name":"Library Hall","other_names":["Administration Building","Dundee Township Park District"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"21 N. Washington St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Carpentersville","county":"Kane County","state":"IL","lat":42.11022104700004,"lon":-88.28791478799997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-08-14","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Conservation","Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Library Hall is a Romanesque-style brick and stone building at 21 North Washington Street in Carpentersville, Kane County, Illinois. It was dedicated on January 2, 1897 and now serves as the administration building of the Dundee Township Park District.","why_significant":"The building was given to the people of Carpentersville by Mary Carpenter Lord as a memorial to her husband Julius Angelo Carpenter, the town's founder. It is described as the most significant thing in Dundee Township left in his memory, built with the finest materials and to a design she chose from her foreign travels. The nomination also cites local significance as a library and community center, and some statewide significance because Carpenter served in the Illinois House of Representatives.","narrative":"Library Hall, at 21 North Washington Street in Carpentersville, Illinois, was a gift from Mary Carpenter Lord in memory of her husband, Julius Angelo Carpenter, who founded the town. Dedicated on January 2, 1897, the Romanesque building was designed by Turnbull and Jones of Elgin and built of St. Louis pressed brick with buff Bedford stone trim. It housed library reading rooms, a ladies parlor, and a church meeting room and community center in the basement. Inside, maple floors, Georgia pine wainscot, beveled leaded glass and a tiled fireplace survive. Carpenter opened the town's first store, built its first bridge over the Fox River, and served in the state House of Representatives. Library use declined and the library closed in 1969, after which the Congregational Church owner offered the building for sale. The Dundee Township Park District bought it to keep it public, and it now serves as the district's administration building.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (dedicated January 2, 1897)","architect_builder":"Turnbull and Jones of Elgin, Ill.","architectural_style":"Romanesque","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in public use as the park district administration building; condition fair, with the exterior largely unchanged apart from a replaced roof and a need for some tuck pointing.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.87556-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/56/8931/28893156/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/73000709.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73000709/b75c79e876-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73000709/b75c79e876-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Library_Hall_in_Carpentersville,_Illinois.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Library_Hall_in_Carpentersville,_Illinois.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"75000666","name":"Dundee Township Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/illinois/dundee-township-historic-district-75000666/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893156","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_Hall","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6542500"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/kane-county/library-hall-73000709/"}