library

#282: Wilmington Branch Library (Wilmington)

#282: Wilmington Branch Library (Wilmington)

April 27, 2026

Art & Literature

The Wilmington Branch library building served the working class harbor town for 61 years, and now houses the Wilmington Historical Society. The building's story is emblematic of the growth of LA's public library system in the 1920s, which in turn is a reflection of the growth of the city itself.

#254: Vermont Square Branch Library (South LA)

#254: Vermont Square Branch Library (South LA)

April 10, 2025

South LA's Vermont Square Branch was a pioneer within the LA public library system: the first purpose-built library building owned by the City of LA, and the first of six funded by a $210,000 grant from Andrew Carnegie.

#241: Washington Irving Branch Library (West Adams)

#241: Washington Irving Branch Library (West Adams)

November 26, 2024

Designed by the firm of Allison & Allison, the Washington Irving Branch was one of a wave of libraries built in the 1920s to meet the needs of a growing LA. It's been vacant since the late 1990s, when the branch moved a few blocks westwards.

#158 & #159: Malaga Cove Plaza Library & Farnham Martin’s Park (Palos Verdes)

#158 & #159: Malaga Cove Plaza Library & Farnham Martin’s Park (Palos Verdes)

June 20, 2023

The Malaga Cove Plaza Library was the first dedicated library on the Palos Verdes peninsula. Dating from 1930, it's the work of Myron Hunt, and reflects the Mediterranean revival style that Hunt and the Palos Verdes Art Jury planned for the entire peninsula. Adjoining the library since the very beginning is Farnham Martin's Park, a formally landscaped oasis designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. with a multi-tiered fountain as its focal point.

#154: Memorial Branch Library (Mid-Wilshire)

#154: Memorial Branch Library (Mid-Wilshire)

May 28, 2023

The Memorial Branch Library from 1930 was dedicated by Los Angeles High School to the memory of its 20 alumni who died in WWI. It's a pitch-perfect gothic revival building, highlighted by a heraldic stained glass window crafted by Judson Studios.

#139: Lincoln Heights Branch Library (Lincoln Heights)

#139: Lincoln Heights Branch Library (Lincoln Heights)

February 19, 2023

The Lincoln Heights Branch library is one of six branches of the Los Angeles Public Library system funded by a grant from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Built in 1916, its growth has paralleled that of the neighborhood surrounding it.

#90: John C. Fremont Branch (Hancock Park) | National Library Week

#90: John C. Fremont Branch (Hancock Park) | National Library Week

April 9, 2022

This beautiful Mediterranean/Spanish colonial revival library from 1927 fits right in with Hancock Park's tony, tasteful homes

#89: Wilshire Branch (Mid-Wilshire) | National Library Week

#89: Wilshire Branch (Mid-Wilshire) | National Library Week

April 8, 2022

The largest and costliest of the final batch of original LAPL libraries, the Wilshire Branch is a fine example of Italian Romanesque architecture, and tells the story of the LAPL's rapid expansion in the 1920s

#88: Cahuenga Branch (East Hollywood) | National Library Week

#88: Cahuenga Branch (East Hollywood) | National Library Week

April 6, 2022

Cahuenga Branch is the final Carnegie library built in LA, and an anchor for the East Hollywood community since 1916.

#87: Helen Hunt Jackson Branch (South LA) | National Library Week

#87: Helen Hunt Jackson Branch (South LA) | National Library Week

April 5, 2022

The smallest branch in the LA Public Library branch system, Helen Hunt Jackson Branch had an outsize impact thanks to Miriam Matthews – the first Black librarian employed by the LAPL.

#86: Felipe de Neve Branch (Westlake) | National Library Week

#86: Felipe de Neve Branch (Westlake) | National Library Week

April 4, 2022

An elegant architectural ode to the Spanish founder of Los Angeles, this library has been a community staple in Westlake/MacArthur Park since 1929

#85: Richard Henry Dana Branch (Cypress Park) | National Library Week

#85: Richard Henry Dana Branch (Cypress Park) | National Library Week

April 3, 2022

This community library served Cypress Park for 80 years. Its architecture alludes to the life of its namesake: attorney, politician and abolitionist Richard Henry Dana, Jr., author of Two Years Before the Mast.

#16: Venice Branch Library (Venice)

#16: Venice Branch Library (Venice)

October 25, 2021

It's not much to look at now. But that's not the point. https://youtu.be/v7UVLn8XNss Added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 19, 1987 After a visit to the[…]

#12: North Hollywood Amelia Earhart Regional Library

#12: North Hollywood Amelia Earhart Regional Library

October 17, 2021

My local LAPL branch, and still my favorite LAPL branch. Added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 19, 1987 I’m lucky that my local library happens to[…]

#4 & 6-10: Historic Buildings in Van Nuys, Downey, Boyle Heights & Toluca Lake

#4 & 6-10: Historic Buildings in Van Nuys, Downey, Boyle Heights & Toluca Lake

October 12, 2021

Historic sites in Van Nuys, Downey, Boyle Heights & Toluca Lake: Case Study House No. 1, a library, a hotel for mariachi musicians and more.