{"nrhp_refnum":"85003446","name":"Defiance Public Library","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"320 Fort St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Defiance","county":"Defiance County","state":"OH","lat":41.28785372600004,"lon":-84.35858201199994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1985-10-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Tudor Gothic Carnegie library built in 1904 of red sandstone at 320 Fort Street, Defiance, Ohio, beside the confluence of the Maumee and Auglaize Rivers and the Fort Defiance site.","why_significant":"It is significant as a local example of Andrew Carnegie's philanthropy joined with citizen efforts to provide free public education. Its rusticated red sandstone walls, octagonal dome, skylight and stained glass make it one of the most unusual of Ohio's 109 Carnegie libraries. It is also associated with the architects J.F. Wing and M.S. Mahurin.","narrative":"Built in 1904, the Defiance Public Library is a story-and-a-half Tudor Gothic building of variegated red sandstone from Mansfield, Ohio. It sits on the bank where the Maumee and Auglaize Rivers meet, next to the site of Fort Defiance, which citizens chose after long debate. Andrew Carnegie gave $22,000 for construction, and the city pledged yearly support. Though it follows the Carnegie pattern of a rectangular plan with a basement, its sandstone walls, flared half-timbered gables, octagonal dome, glass skylight, stained glass and armored-hand lamps set it apart from other Ohio Carnegie libraries. Inside, the reading room keeps its original oak woodwork, semi-octagonal desk and much early shelving. Limestone wings were added in 1962 and 1970, but the original block retains a high degree of integrity. The architects J.F. Wing and M.S. Mahurin were known for work in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and local firm Baker, Baker and Baltes built it. It remains an architectural landmark in a city of mostly brick and frame buildings.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"J.F. Wing and M.S. Mahurin (architects); Baker, Baker and Baltes (local builders)","architectural_style":"Tudor Gothic","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Occupied and in use as a library; the interior was restored in 1975-76 and wings were added in 1962 and 1970.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.175062-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/85003446.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85003446/fc29fcce87-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85003446/fc29fcce87-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Defiance_Public_Library.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Defiance_Public_Library.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71988014","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defiance_Public_Library","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5251536"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/defiance-county/defiance-public-library-85003446/"}