#boston-public-library — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #boston-public-library, aggregated by home.social.
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Demonstrators gather in Boston as Iran War enters third week
Demonstrators continue to gather in Boston …
#NewsBeep #News #BreakingNews #KhargIsland #Americanflag #Boston #BostonPublicLibrary #breakingnews #demonstrator #group #Iran #iranwar #IranianAmericansofBoston #Iranianflag #iranianpeople #Iranian-Americans #Massachusetts #MiddleEast #OilExports #PresidentDonaldTrump #promise #saturday #sign #StraitofHormuz #thirdweek #u.s.militaryintervention #voice #WCVB
https://www.newsbeep.com/435077/ -
A locked door and myriad treasures beyond, in vast rooms deemed unusable at Boston Public Library – The Boston Globe
A locked door and myriad treasures beyond, in vast rooms deemed unusable at Boston Public Library
By Malcolm Gay, The Boston Globe updated on October 3, 2025, 7 minutes to read
The resplendence of the Boston Public Library’s McKim Building unfolds with each step up the grand staircase.
Past the imposing stone lions, the golden-hued stairwell gives way to an airy gallery of murals, a millennium-spanning celebration of the muses. Nearby, a narrower stairway leads to the hushed third floor, where people wander the opulent gallery to untangle John Singer Sargent’s “Triumph of Religion,” a monumental cycle of murals the artist left unfinished despite nearly three decades of work.
Inevitably, some will try the leather-clad door at the end of the gallery, whichseems to promise yet more wonders beyond.
But the door is locked.
It has been closed to the public for more than a decade, concealing a once-grand enfilade of vaulted ceilings, interior arcades, and elevated walkways that wrap around the library’s courtyard.
Jamila Beasley, collections security manager for the Boston Public Library, opens a door to one of the rooms on the third floor of BPL’s historic McKim Building. – Jessica Rinaldi / Globe StaffThe rooms, which rival many of the building’s most celebrated spaces, now warehouse a Narnia-worthy collection of the library’s holdings — everything from sculptures of Joan of Arc and a portrait of Samuel Johnson, to a room of illuminated dioramas, where a pair of miniature boxers stand frozen in mid-fight, as though before a roaring crowd.
There are neoclassical sculptures that peek from beneath plastic, a weathervane in the shape of a cod, a printing press that belonged to artist Hyman Bloom, and a set of golf clubs once swung by author Cleveland Amory. And that’s to say nothing of the myriad architectural plans, microfiche, administrative records, card catalogues, and archives piled about in boxes and in crates.
At 130 years old, the McKim Building is nearly as iconic as the collection it houses. Designed by architect Charles Follen McKim,it is a sort of secular cathedral, exalting the life of the mind.
But today, nearly 40 percent of the building — essentially the entire third floor — lies dilapidated and inaccessible to the public. Paint peels from its walls and ceilings. Crumbling plaster has exposed masonry. Leaky pipes have prompted library officials to turn off the heat, meaning most of the palatial third-floor rooms have no climate control at all, a wrecking ball of temperature swings and humidity.
“Venus,” by Francis Davis Millet (after Antonio Canova), stands draped in a protective sheet of plastic on the third floor of BPL’s McKim Building. – Jessica Rinaldi / Globe StaffThe West Gallery on the third floor of BPL’s McKim Building, circa 1895. – Boston Public LibraryNow at a crisis point, the unusable spaces and their at-riskcontents have prompted library officials to begin imagining a massive — and massively expensive — overhaul, one that would not only restore the third floor but also reshape one of the country’s oldest and most vaunted library buildings.
BPL president David Leonard said any renovation must not merely safeguard the building, but also secure the library’s collections, making them (and the physical building) more accessible to the public.
“We have an obligation to our collections and to the building itself, which we like to think of as part of the collection,” Leonard said while touring the McKim.
The library recently received a $5.5 million gift from an anonymous donor to study the building and its systems. It’s a preliminary step to understand what obstacles and opportunities the building may present as a renovation project that seeks to update the 19th century structure to meet the demands of 21st century library patrons.
Once the five-year planning phase is completed, leaders hope to enter the project’s design phase.
“We have an obligation to our collections and to the building itself,” said BPL president David Leonard. – Jessica Rinaldi / Globe StaffBeth Prindle, BPL’s director of research and special collections, called the renovation effort “a once in a multiple-generation opportunity.”
“The McKim transformation and rebirth is a clarion call,” she said. “We collected this incredible, irreplaceable collection, and we need [the public] to help us steward it, not only for [today], but for future generations.”
In addition to branch renovations, BPL has completed two major capital projects on its central library over the past decade. In 2016, the library unveiled a $78 million renovation to its lending library in the 1970s-era Boylston Street Building. That was followed in 2022 by a $16 million project that carved out a state-of-the-art facility to house its vast special collections of rare books and other historic items.
The cost of renovating the McKim, however, would likely dwarf those earlier projects. A 2021 master plan estimated construction costs at $325 million, but the final project could cost significantly more.
Leonard, who compared the project’s potential cost to building a new public high school,said the library will have a better price estimate in a year or so, but “regardless, it’s a large, triple, hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Continue/Read Original Article Here: A locked door and myriad treasures beyond, in vast rooms deemed unusable at Boston Public Library
#2025 #America #Books #Boston #BostonPublicLibrary #Education #History #Libraries #Library #LibraryOfCongress #LibraryTreasures #LockedDoor #Massachusetts #TheBostonGlobe #Travel #Treasures #UnitedStates #VastRooms
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MPR News: Boston Public Library aims to increase access to a vast historic archive using AI. “Boston Public Library, one of the oldest and largest public library systems in the country, is launching a project this summer with OpenAI and Harvard Law School to make its trove of historically significant government documents more accessible to the public.”
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Boston Library Consortium (BLC) Announces Launch of Digital Lending Toolkit
BLC is pleased to announce the launch of our Digital Lending Toolkit, a comprehensive resource designed to support libraries and consortia in navigating the evolving landscape of digital resource sharing.
#libraries #controlleddigitallending #ebooks #digitallibrary #bibliotheques #BostonPublicLibrary #blc
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Staring contest with “Sibylant House” by Swoon, deep inside the Boston Public Library. Art that watches back.
#Photography #PublicArt #SwoonArt #BostonPublicLibrary #PortraitPhotography #ScottKissPhoto
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AI Chatbots Are About to Get a Huge Boost—From Libraries
https://www.inc.com/associated-press/ai-chatbots-are-about-to-get-a-huge-boost-from-libraries/91201600#ai #libraries #harvard #bigdata #bodleian #BostonPublicLibrary #digitalization
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#BostonWeekend 10/x
Thu:
Ultimate #nerd cred: Science #Trivia at the #BostonPublicLibrary #Copley with GBH/Nova? Its free but RSVP.https://ticketbud.com/events/75ea12de-29e3-11f0-96d5-42010a7170c0
#Boston #CambridgeMA #STEM #MIT -
The #BostonPublicLibrary's free Globe access has been really over-subscribed of late, it seems. Karen Read interest, maybe?
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The courtyard at the Boston Public Library. A peaceful place in the midst of Boston's Back Bay.
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It's funny but I rarely cross the river and head into Boston. (Ok, I'm both spoiled and lazy.)
Walked to the Boston Public Library today. Many people don't appreciate how beautiful the place is. If you're visiting or a local and need a break, I highly recommend stopping for a visit. Just take a moment to enjoy the quiet, the AC and above all and the art and architecture.
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Boston Globe: BPL will use AI to expand digital collection. “With help from the Institutional Data initiative at Harvard Law School Library, the Boston Library is using AI technology to make the materials available online and in the form of public domain data collections, which can be used to train future or existing AI models.”
https://rbfirehose.com/2025/03/20/boston-globe-bpl-will-use-ai-to-expand-digital-collection/
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With auto-renews, the amount of time you can hold onto #BostonPublicLibrary books is wild. I keep on thinking I need to get the books back, but I still have over a week left in my loan!
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boston, massachusetts
august 1959boston public library
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dboo/51657708859
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dboo/12776423473/part of an archival project, featuring the photographs of nick dewolf
© the Nick DeWolf Foundation
Image-use requests are welcome via nickdewolfphotoarchive [at] gmail [dot] com#photography #film #BlackAndWhite #bw #boston #massachusetts #library #BostonPublicLibrary #building #sconce #night #lights #1950s
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A few photos around Boston
#Boston #rain #buildings #travel #bostonpubliclibrary #library #photography
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The #BostonPublicLibrary makes the New York Times and Wall Street Journal available for free to cardholders but not the Washington Post.
The Post has its problems, but IMHO it's still leaps and bounds ahead of the Times and the Journal. Also, it regularly published investigative journalism of national importance which isn't comparably covered by the Times or the Journal.
I've asked BPL to add the Post to their lineup. Perhaps you would like to as well? [email protected]
#Boston #BPL -
Went to go see The Interrobangers from Company One tonight at BPL (did you know they have a theater in the basement?). I enjoyed it a lot; it’s a modern riff on scooby doo except the characters are actually explicitly queer this time. Sharing because this show deserves a bigger audience than it had tonight.
Also, for the covid cautious, Sunday shows are masks required.
#Boston #BostonPublicLibrary #BostonTheater #ThingsToDoInBoston -
"Last year, the number of #ebooks the #BostonPublicLibrary [@bplboston] lent out…exceeded the number of physical books it circulated by more than five to one."
https://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2023/11/12/public-libraries-boston/ -
We’re RED-y to win our members a fair contract! Show your support tomorrow by wearing something RED! #bplpsa #bostonpubliclibrary #library #union #unionstrong #libraryunion #boston
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We meet with the City’s representatives and BPL management again this Friday, November 3.
We will continue to fight for the contract our members deserve!
Be sure to wear red to show your support for our bargaining team! #bplpsa #bostonpubliclibrary #library #union #unionstrong #libraryunion
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Our members have been working for over three weeks under an expired contact. They show up and give their best, every single day, to the Boston community without the promise of raises, better benefits, and more. When you see a PSA member, thank them for remaining committed to their role! #Bplpsa #bostonpubliclibrary #library #union #unionstrong #libraryunion
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After a disappointing bargaining session last Friday, our countdown goes on. Eighteen days of PSA membership working under an expired contract when what they deserve is a fair, updated contract that meets their needs.
#Bplpsa #bostonpubliclibrary #library #union #unionstrong #libraryunion -
Here’s hoping we can make 13 our lucky number today as we head back to the bargaining table with the City and library management. Our members deserve a fair contract and we are working hard to deliver it for them!
#bplpsa #bostonpubliclibrary #library #union #unionstrong #libraryunion
