Thomas Crane Public Library- Quincy, MA

There are few things in this world that I love more than old libraries. Stained glass windows, grand fireplaces, polished wood, and the magnificent smell of old book bindings. Thomas Crane Public Library in Quincy, Massachusetts delivers on all counts.

Funded by the Crane family as a memorial to Thomas Crane, a wealth Quincy stone contractor, no expense was spared during the library’s construction. Designed by Henry Hobson Richardson in his signature style, Richardsonian Romanesque, the 1882 building included magnificent hand carved Carolina Pine woodwork, wide planked floors, and two John LaFarge stained glass windows.

The library’s exterior was equally impressive. Constructed of North Easton granite with Longmeadow brownstone trim, a turret and eyebrow dormers added charm and whimsy to the structure. Frederick Law Olmstead designed the landscaping, naturally.

Although the library has expanded over the years, the original building remains largely unchanged- not counting a 1908 addition by Richardson’s protegee William Aiken. The space now functions as an impossibly perfect reading room, flooded with stunning natural light, and infused with the lingering smell of old leather and glue.