First and foremost there was Andrew Carnegie. Now, there’s the New York Public Library’s Stephen A. Schwartzman Building where a centennial was recently celebrated. And many, many others…some of whom have pretty funny names.
For a bit of mid-week levity, here’s a New Yorker piece about the phenomenon of naming libraries after their generous benefactors:
The Queens County-Abilify Library Museum and Center for the Performing Arts has been unusually blessed with financial angels who shelter us under their collective wing, and we wish to take a moment to recognize them here. Like most cultural institutions of its kind, the Q.C.-A.L.M. & C.P.A. literally would be unable to function without the kindness and generosity of our donors. To put it plainly, we owe them our lives. The sad part, however, is that although visitors to our facility see the names of these individuals gracing our walls, door lintels, exit signs, and other flat surfaces, they don’t know, and rarely stop to inquire, who these wonderful people are. For that regrettable ignorance the following is a small attempt at a remedy.
Read more in this week’s New Yorker.
Naming names…
Our lovely library is named after the couple who gave the original funding. The proper name is “The Joseph W. Wachute, and his wife, Emma Linzenmeyer Wachute, Memorial Library. We don’t use the full honorific very often… An additional note: we are located at 125 S. Wacouta Avenue, also named after the same family, some of whose members could not agree on the proper spelling!