{"nrhp_refnum":"84002225","name":"Taunton Public Library","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Pleasant St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Taunton","county":"Bristol County","state":"MA","lat":41.90341735700008,"lon":-71.09419650599995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1984-07-05","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Beaux-Arts/Neoclassical public library on Pleasant Street in Taunton, Massachusetts, built in 1903 of Indiana limestone to designs by Albert R. Ross. It is city-owned and still used as a library.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the library is an important local example of the Beaux-Arts style and reflects an optimistic phase of early 20th century community development. It also reflects a local response to the national movement for educational reform and \"free libraries.\" It retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship and association.","narrative":"Built in 1903 on Pleasant Street in Taunton, this public library was designed by Albert R. Ross in the Beaux-Arts/Neoclassical manner and faced in Indiana limestone. A $70,000 grant from Andrew Carnegie helped pay for its construction. Beyond housing the book collection, it served as a community cultural center, offering lecture series, special events and performances. The building follows a T-shaped plan with a projecting central bay containing a round-arched opening and a formal entrance with an eared surround, broken pediment and cartouche. Engaged Scamozzi columns and pilasters divide the central pavilion into bays and carry a complex entablature, while windows vary between rectangular and round-arched types with molded surrounds. A brick addition was added at the rear in 1979. It was listed for its architecture and for reflecting early 20th century educational reform and the spread of free libraries, and it retains a high degree of integrity.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Albert R. Ross","architectural_style":"Beaux-Arts/Neoclassical","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Still in use as a library, owned by the city; a rear brick addition was built in 1979.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:57.277122-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/17/7894/63789417/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/84002225.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84002225/53bef0c500-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84002225/53bef0c500-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Kenneth C. Zirkel","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Taunton_Public_Library_front_view_2015.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Kenneth C. Zirkel</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Taunton_Public_Library_front_view_2015.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63789417","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taunton_Public_Library","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7688800"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/bristol-county/taunton-public-library-84002225/"}