Established in 1896, we have been serving the community from the heart of downtown ever since.
History Timeline
- 1897
- ICPL first opened its doors on Thursday, January 21, 1897 on the second floor of the C.O.D. Steam Laundry building at 211 Iowa Ave.
- 1901
- Our second location opened in June of 1901 at 212 East College Street in the Cannon & Pratt building.
- 1904
- The Carnegie Library at 212 South Linn Street opened its doors on Thursday, October 27, 1904.
- 1963
- An addition was built onto the Carnegie building and dedicated on Sunday, November 10, 1963.
- 1981
- The ICPL at 123 South Linn Street opened its doors to the public on June 14, 1981 after hundreds of volunteers moved all of the library materials across the street.
- 2004
- Doors opened on a major renovation to the new building on June 12, 2004.
- Today
- The Iowa City Public Library remains at 123 South Linn Street.
C.O.D. Steam Laundry building
Carnegie Library
Current location
Additional Resources
A Century of Stories: The History of the Iowa City Public Library, 1896-1997 by Lolly P. Eggers
Visit our Digital History Project for more photos