Blackwell Library: 1957-1975

On July 26, 1950, the State Department of Education approved a six year building program for a new library facility at the State Teachers College. The College Library Building, which was not named Blackwell Library until 1966, opened in October 1957. Local architects Malone and Williams constructed the building at a cost of $367,000. It boasted a seating capacity of 250 and shelf space for 75,000 books.

By 1953, the libraries included an off-site Campus Elementary School Library that housed a collection of juvenile literature. When the school grew from a teachers college to Salisbury State College in 1963, the library’s collection increased dramatically to support the new majors. However, by 1969, an examination of the space concluded that Blackwell Library desperately required more room to meet student and shelving needs, which led to discussions about renovation.

Blackwell Library was named after the university’s third president, Dr. J.D. Blackwell, on December 6, 1966

Students studying amidst the stacks, 1969

A patron using the Blackwell Library card catalog, 1968

Reading the New York Times on microfilm, circa 1969

Two women browsing the stacks, circa 1957

Furniture in the library around 1957

Blackwell Library’s rear parking lot, circa 1960

The interior of the College Library Building (Blackwell Library), with the elevator on the left, shortly after construction in 1957

The interior of the College Library Building (Blackwell Library) shortly after construction in 1957

The College Library Building, 1963

The circulation desk at Blackwell Library prior to the 1975 renovation

Proposed furniture layout for the College Library Building (Blackwell Library) in 1956

The entrance to Blackwell Library, circa 1966

Library employee returning a book to the stacks, circa 1975

Before the 1975 renovation, the College Library Building was architecturally similar to the student dormitories also constructed in the 1950s

Documents and Artifacts

1950-51 report outlines plans for a College Library Building that was eventually completed in 1957

1954 blueprint shows plans for the College Library Building’s first floor

Original door handle for Blackwell Library prior to 1975 renovation

Invitation for the 1957 dedication of the College Library Building (not yet named Blackwell Library)

State Teachers College (now Salisbury University) student newspaper, the Holly Leaf, reported on the new library, October 30, 1957. Read the rest of the issue here: http://hdl.handle.net/11603/3521