{"nrhp_refnum":"92000557","name":"Peck Memorial Library","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"28 E. Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Marathon","county":"Cortland County","state":"NY","lat":42.441118508000045,"lon":-76.03301111299999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-05-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two and one-half story brick library building at 28 East Main Street in the village of Marathon, Cortland County, New York, built in 1894 by Lewis G. Ville of Cortland to a design by Cortland architect Miles F. Howe.","why_significant":"The building is significant under Criterion C in architecture as a distinctive, intact example of late-nineteenth century civic architecture in a small village. Its eclectic design reflects Queen Anne and Romanesque influence, and it is a representative work of architect Miles F. Howe. Its unusual multiple-use plan, combining a library, bank and opera house, and the circumstances of its donation also recall an aspect of the village's history.","narrative":"Peck Memorial Library is a brick civic building on East Main Street in Marathon, facing the village green. Built in 1894 and dedicated in 1895, it was funded by a $20,000 trust left by Mersena Peck, who died in 1891, for a free public library. Cortland architect Miles F. Howe designed it, and Lewis G. Ville of Cortland built it. The building mixes Romanesque and Queen Anne elements, including a hip roof with cross gables, brick corbeling, an elliptical entrance arch on polished granite columns, and a terra-cotta medallion. Its interior was planned for three civic uses: a library and a bank on the first floor, and a six hundred seat opera house above, added at the request of 125 citizens. The opera house hosted traveling performers and, from 1930 to 1953, motion pictures. The building keeps most of its original features despite interior changes and some deterioration. It was listed for its architecture and its representative local character.","period_of_significance":"1895","architect_builder":"Miles F. Howe, architect; Lewis G. Ville, builder","architectural_style":"Late Victorian (eclectic, with Romanesque and Queen Anne influence)","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"The bank space on the first floor was recently vacated; the second-floor auditorium is currently unoccupied and rarely used; the library continues to operate on the first floor. Some deterioration is noted.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:46.23612-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/92000557.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92000557/46e735cb64-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92000557/46e735cb64-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Jerrye &amp; Roy Klotz, MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PECK_MEMORIAL_LIBRARY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jerrye &amp;amp; Roy Klotz, MD</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:PECK_MEMORIAL_LIBRARY.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75317157","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peck_Memorial_Library","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7158718"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/cortland-county/peck-memorial-library-92000557/"}