New exhibit chronicling library's history on display through mid-June

The Atlantic City Free Public Library is chronicling the 115 years of services it has provided to the city since formally opening its doors in a house (see photo) in 1903. The public is invited to view our new exhibit, “The History of the Atlantic City Free Public Library: 115 Years in the Making.”
(View coverage of the exhibit opening from SNJ Today and The Press of Atlantic City).
Through the use of photos and artifacts from the library’s Atlantic City Heritage Collections, the exhibit highlights many of the library’s locations, staff, programs and services. This exhibit will remain on display through mid-June 2018.
“The History of the Atlantic City Free Public Library: 115 Years in the Making” exhibit has been funded by the Paul Nee Fund of the Foundation of the Atlantic City Free Public Library. Nee (1956-90) was a lifelong resident of Atlantic City and worked for the library for nearly 20 years. He began his Atlantic City Library career as a teenager and later became the Library Director in 1987.
The library’s history dates back to November 1901, when a plan for a public library was embraced by Atlantic City residents in a landslide referendum, with 6,062 voters in favor and only 30 opposed. After a period of providing services at City Hall, the library formally opened its doors on Jan. 1, 1903, in a wood-framed house at Illinois and Pacific avenues. The land at this site had been previously purchased to be the library’s permanent location. Subsequently, Andrew Carnegie donated $71,000 for the construction of a new library building, and the dedication for this structure took place in 1905. The library remained in the building – now the Carnegie Center, operated by Stockton University – until 1985, when the current Main Library location at 1 North Tennessee Ave. opened.