Pawtucket in Providence County, Rhode Island — The American Northeast (New England)
Pawtucket Public Library
Deborah Cook Sayles Building
| | 1899 - 1902 | |
Downtown Pawtucket
Historic District
in the
National Register of Historic Places
United States Department of the Interior
The Deborah Cook Sayles Public Library is an impressive example of Classical Revival architecture, designed by the Boston firm of Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson. Built of the finest grain white granite, the library features its soaring pillars, decorative ceilings, and glass-floored north balcony. The facility was one of the first in the country to provide access to the stacks, and to open on Sundays, affording mill workers the opportunity to use the library on their one day off. Minerva Sanders, the first librarian, is credited with making the library one of the first in the nation to serve children under the age of fourteen. The old Post Office (1896-97) was connected to Sayles Library in 1981 to form this combined structure now known as the Pawtucket Public Library.
Erected by City of Pawtucket.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Charity & Public Work • Education • Women. A significant historical year for this entry is 1981.
Location. 41° 52.716′ N,
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in Rhode Island’s Blackstone Valley, in Greater Providence, and on Narragansett Bay. It is also in the American Northeast and in New England. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Pawtucket Public Library / Old Pawtucket Post Office (within shouting distance of this marker); Slater Mill (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Old Slater Mill (about 600 feet away); A Mechanic's Life (about 600 feet away); First Successful Cotton Mill in America (about 600 feet away); a different marker also named The Old Slater Mill
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), June 19, 2020
2. Deborah Sayles Cook Public Library aka Pawtucket Public Library
National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form
Click for more information.
Click for more information.
Other markers no longer nearby. Slater Mill Historic Site (was about 600 feet away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Sylvanus Brown House (was about 600 feet away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).
Regarding Pawtucket Public Library. The library is a contributing structure to the Downtown Pawtucket Historic District. The library itself was previously listed individually in 1975.
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), June 19, 2020
3. National Register of Historic Places plaque on the library
Downtown Pawtucket Historic District Nomination Form
Click for more information.
Click for more information.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 12, 2024. It was originally submitted on June 21, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 443 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on June 21, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
