Van Wert in Van Wert County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

The Brumback Library

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., October 0/2008

1. The Brumback Library Marker

Inscription. When local banker and businessman John Sanford Brumback left a large bequest to Van Wert County for the purpose of establishing a countywide library in 1897, such institutions did not yet exist, and Ohio had no legal provision for a tax-supported county library system. In response, the Ohio Legislature passed an enabling law in April 1898, marking the beginning of the county library system in the United States. Designed by Toledo architect David L. Stine and built of Bedford limestone in an eclectic Romanesque style, the Brumback Library was dedicated in 1901. Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, it continues to serve as a center of knowledge for all of Van Wert County.

Erected 2001 by The Ohio Bicentennial Commission, The Longaberger Company, The Library Enrichment Foundation of the Brumback Library, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 4-81.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Charity & Public Work • Education. In addition, it is included in the Ohio Historical Society / The Ohio History Connection series

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

list. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1898.

Location. 40° 52.177′ N, 84° 35.079′ W. Marker is in Van Wert, Ohio, in Van Wert County. It is on West Main Street (State Highway 118), on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 215 West Main Street, Van Wert OH 45891, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Ohio’s Till Plains.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: First County Library in the United States (a few steps from this marker); The Historic Lincoln Highway (a few steps from this marker); Van Wert County Veterans Memorial (about 700 feet away); These carriage steps (approx. 0.2 miles away); Van Wert County Wourld War II Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.3 miles