The original Fremont Public Library was built in 1903 on the corner of Military and Park avenues, where the Runza restaurant is now. It was one of the first of 68 Carnegie libraries in Nebraska. This library was built when Fremont had a population of 8,700.
The current library at 1030 N. Broad St. opened in 1971, and was built when the population was at 23,000. Inside, it included a grand staircase (below) and featured the statue of a little girl with outstretched arms called La Brezza (below). The statue was purchased in New York from a Florentine company. A chandelier (below) in the library was also from Italy.
Today this gorgeous architectural beauty is bursting at the seams (see images below). Fremont’s last census showed 26,500 people living in Fremont. The actual service area of the library could be as high as 36,600, or the population of Dodge County, because so many county residents pay for nonresident cards each year. The library services and programs have outgrown the physical space of the current building. From the outside it looks large, but with the open floor concept, the building actually only has about 21,000 square feet. The expansion project aims to expand to 36,692 square feet. 30% of the overall space of the library is allocated to structure and support spaces such as the HVAC system, IT systems, and walls.
Wildlife Encounters 2017
Santa and Mrs Claus Storytime 2017
String Beans 2017
The expansion would be the start of the next step in history for this magnificent building. It would allow more room for the programs shown above and allow for growth of programs and services, where today, we are maxed out on capacity.
Keene Memorial Library Expansion Project 