Please note that this is a student project, and represents the student's impressions of his visit.
This project should not be considered an authenticated source on the history of the Providence Athenaeum.
To find out more about the Providence Athenaeum, please visit the library's webpage, providenceathenaeum.org.
This project should not be considered an authenticated source on the history of the Providence Athenaeum.
To find out more about the Providence Athenaeum, please visit the library's webpage, providenceathenaeum.org.
The Providence Athenaeum
Project by Mark Stokely
Founded in 1753, the Providence Athenaeum is the fourth oldest library in the United States of America. [Editor's note: It is not strictly accurate to state that the Athenaeum was founded in 1753, or is the fourth oldest library in the country. For a more comprehensive account of the Athenaeum's history, please visit https://providenceathenaeum.org/about/history.] Started before the use of tax-supported libraries, the Providence Athenaeum was a membership based independent library, which allowed its members to borrow any of the books in its collection. Over the years, the collection has expanded greatly and the library has relocated twice, but that has not detracted from the impact the Providence Athenaeum has had on the identity of Rhode Island. With its ties to the community and history, The Athenaeum is a site that reminds us of our past culture. At the same time, the Athenaeum functions as a library, a place to research certain memories. This double role as a place to research memory as well as to store memory made me think that the Athenaeum would be a good site to explore some thoughts I had about the idea of places of memory.
One of the readings that particularly peaked my interests so far this semester was “This Will Kill That” by Victor Hugo. The struggle between the written word and architecture as the keeper of our memories is an everlasting conundrum with no clear answer, and the Athenaeum provides such a great centerpiece to further explore this conflict. The Athenaeum itself is a physical representation of this battle. Does the identity, the memory that the Athenaeum comes from the collection of books and works, constantly in flux, or from the building that houses the collection?
I would also like to explore the idea of the Athenaeum being a site of memory. The building is listed as a National Landmark, but why? Its hard to identify any historical significance of the building other than the fact that it’s one of the oldest libraries, yet there has been such importance placed on the Athenaeum as being a key role in the defining Rhode Island culture. The building and works within reflect the overall memory of an American identity, form the Greek Revival style of the building to the portrait of George Washington hanging in the reading room. And with these physical representations of Americana, the building has an air of historical importance within itself.
I would like to explore both of these ideas by looking at the history, lore, physical building and collection, and personal memory that surround the identity of the Providence Athenaeum.
