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Converse Memorial Library
United States historic place From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Converse Memorial Library – also known as Converse Memorial Building – is a historically significant building designed by noted American architect Henry Hobson Richardson. From 1885 to 1996, it housed the Malden Public Library, which now occupies a modern building adjacent to it. The former library is located at 36 Salem Street, Malden, Massachusetts.
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The building was a gift of Elisha S. and Mary D. Converse in memory of their murdered son, Frank Eugene Converse, who was the victim of the first bank robbery/murder in North America. It was constructed 1883-1885 in an overall L-shape, with a facade of brown Longmeadow sandstone, a tower rising from the L's inner corner, and a heavily arched entry porch set within the L's short arm. The main library room is 50 x 36 feet and finished in elaborately carved white oak with a high, vaulted ceiling. Its furniture was designed by Richardson and manufactured by the Boston firm of A. H. Davenport and Company.[3]
In 1896 two additions were made to the building, designed by Richardson's successor firm, Shepley, Rutan & Coolidge. One gable-roofed wing extends the building to the rear, along Park Street, following the same general lines of the existing structure. The other addition was a flat-roofed rectangular stack area also attached to the rear. An octagonal gallery space further extended the rear in 1916, designed by Newhall & Blevins.[3]
The Converse Memorial Building was the last of Richardson's library designs, and is generally considered among his finest works. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987.[2][3]
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In Popular Culture
The interior of the library's historic wing provided the setting for a scene in the movie Ted 2, starring Mark Wahlberg and Amanda Seyfried.
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