Madison

Madison. Library of Congress. , The Thomas Jefferson Building , The Library of Congress was housed in the Capitol Building until 1897, when the new building, now known as the Thomas Jefferson Building, opened. Hailed as a glorious national monument with its elaborately decorated façade and interior, the structure was intended specifically to serve as the national library. Designed in an Italian Renaissance style by John L. Smithmeyer and Paul J. Pelz, construction was completed under the direction of Thomas Lincoln Casey (Brigadier General for the Army Corps of Engineers), with his assistant Bernard R. Green as superintendent of construction, and son Edward Pearce Casey as architect., The John Adams Building , Called the Annex Building when it opened to the public in 1939, the second Library of Congress building was named for President John Adams in 1980. The simple classical structure was intended as a functional and efficient bookstack "encircled with work spaces" and topped by a reading room. The firm of Pierson and Wilson designed the building. with Alexander Buel Trowbridge as consulting architect. The building is recognized as one of the few distinguished Art Deco buildings in Washington, D.C. With five stories above ground, the Adams Building contains 180 miles of shelving and can hold 10 million volumes on its 12 tiers of stacks. Each tier provides about 13 acres of shelf space. The exterior bronze doors on the east and west fronts are adorned with relief figures by Lee Lawrie that represent the history of the written word.