{"nrhp_refnum":"84001120","name":"Carnegie Library of Valdosta","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"305 W. Central Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Valdosta","county":"Lowndes County","state":"GA","lat":30.83066521300003,"lon":-83.28270898799997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1984-01-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-story-with-raised-basement Neoclassical library building at 305 West Central Avenue in Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, built in 1913 to designs by architect Lloyd Greer, with Little and Phillips as contractors.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is a good example of early-twentieth-century Neoclassical public architecture and an early Georgia library whose plan reflects contemporary Carnegie library design guidance. It was Valdosta's first public library, serving from 1914 to 1976. It is also associated with philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, whose $15,000 gift made the library possible.","narrative":"Built in 1913 at 305 West Central Avenue in Valdosta, this Neoclassical building served as the city's first public library from 1914 to 1976. Architect Lloyd Greer designed it in load-bearing brick, with a limestone basement, tapestry brick above, and a pedimented entrance bay with Ionic columns set in antis. Inside, one large open room once held bookshelves arranged so a single librarian could oversee the whole building. The roughly $41,000 cost came from a $15,000 Carnegie grant, city and county funds, and community fund-raising. The library also hosted Little Theater plays and civic meetings and stood near a grammar school and high school, both since demolished. After a ceiling partly collapsed in 1976, the building was closed, then restored and converted to a museum run by the Lowndes County Historical Society. Its significance rests on its architecture, its role in local education, and its link to Andrew Carnegie's library philanthropy.","period_of_significance":"1900- (specific date 1913)","architect_builder":"Architect: Lloyd Greer; Contractors: Little and Phillips","architectural_style":"Neoclassical","criteria":["A","B","C"],"status_note":"Converted from a library to a museum in 1976 and occupied as the Lowndes County Historical Society Museum; largely unaltered, with interior bracing added in 1980 to support a sagging ceiling.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:40.583182-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_GA/84001120.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84001120/7668aa6220-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84001120/7668aa6220-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","author":"Ebyabe","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Valdosta_GA_Carnegie_Library01.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Ebyabe</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.5</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Valdosta_GA_Carnegie_Library01.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/93208823","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_Library_of_Valdosta","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16852322"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/georgia/lowndes-county/carnegie-library-of-valdosta-84001120/"}