On a steamy Thursday evening in early June 1900, the Tyrone Borough Council met to discuss several issues facing the railroad boom town. This meeting, however, was different. A highly publicized issue was on the agenda and the civic-minded citizens of Tyrone came in droves to hear the results. Little did they know, the issue that would ignite a controversy wasn’t the building of an electric railway, as they had thought. The new issue was contained in a letter that lay in the pocket of local contractor F.R. Waring.
In late 1870, Tyrone had received a guest of great renown passing through on Pennsylvania’s Main Line en route to Bellefonte. Steel had burst onto the scene as America’s next great product, and Andrew Carnegie was its king. Over the next several decades, Carnegie would grow into a near-mythical figure, and he would use his legendary wealth to give back to communities he saw as worthy of his investment. Tyrone, it seems, was deemed worthy of one of Carnegie’s most famous gifts: a public library.
In his pocket on that June evening in 1900, F.R. Waring held a letter written by Andrew Carnegie himself, pledging $50,000 to build a grand library in Tyrone, contingent on the borough’s commitment to fund the library at $3,000 per year. When the letter was presented to the council, members quickly moved to send Mr. Carnegie an acknowledgement of the letter and promised it would receive its due attention.
At the following month’s meeting, council took up the library proposition. It was the general sentiment of the meeting that this generous gift should be taken advantage of, but concerns remained about funding. The board noted it was “impossible for the municipality to levy sufficient tax millage to raise $3,000 for support of the library.” Council wisely moved to create a committee to investigate the viability of the proposal and confer with Carnegie.
Unfortunately, the committee would have to wait to perform their function. Letters sent to Carnegie wouldn’t be received by the tycoon until his return from Scotland, where he frequently stayed for months at a time. Tyrone was stuck in limbo and would have to proceed with discussions in the meantime. By the end of August, no definitive action had been taken.
As the committee and borough deliberated in private, the community opinion would be amplified by the Tyrone Daily Herald. Several letters to the editor were penned over the next two months, both supporting and in opposition to the library question. James W. Scott voiced his concerns in raising local taxes, arguing:
“[My] argument against it is plainly only that of benevolence towards the majority of our townspeople, so well taxed already that for many of us it is a cause of rejoicing when in an exceptional year there is no increase in this direction.”
Supporters of the library project recognized its expense, but viewed it as necessary for the progress of Tyrone. A townsperson writing under the alias “Progress” championed the cause, saying:
“I have noted further, that many progressive towns in the western part of this state have good reason to be grateful to the same generous donor for the benefits derived from the establishing of a library on same terms offered to Tyrone. I would therefore urge all citizens interested in the progress and welfare of our town to cooperate heartily in preparing a plan for the acceptance of the gift.”
Discourse, it seems, always has a way of spiraling into incivility. As discussions continued by both officials in council meetings and regular folks in taverns, cigar shops, and homes, a clear divide formed among Tyrone’s citizenry. For several months at the end of 1900, everyone engaged in the war of words. One pro-library activist would pen that “those who endeavor to persuade the people of their community to retire into molluscan shell of contented inaction are the greatest enemies of mankind.” In response, a letter sent to the Daily Herald from Sykesville, Maryland, would proclaim, “The country has enough libraries in it. This is a day of newspapers rather than libraries, and the man who wants to benefit the masses can do so to any extent he chooses by furnishing newspapers to them.”
On Thursday, December 6, 1900, after months of deliberation, debates, and presented solutions, the Borough Council was determined to make its decision. Crowds made their way to the council chamber hoping to hear their opinions validated. In that meeting, the saga of the Carnegie Library came to a swift, unceremonious end. With Carnegie’s unwillingness to modify his offer, there would be no public library. The $3,000 yearly burden was too much. That decision would leave Tyrone without a public library until 1965, when the Tyrone-Snyder Public Library was established.
It is difficult to say whether the Carnegie Library would still be standing today had the borough accepted the offer. Between 1883 and 1929, Carnegie would build more than 2,500 libraries across the world for both municipalities and universities. Today, roughly 800 remain in use as public libraries. As time passes, these relics, with their ever-increasing maintenance and upkeep, give way to the unstoppable forces of time and technology. However, it is impossible not to wonder “what could have been” in Tyrone. T&G
Local Historia is a passion for local history, community, and preservation. Its mission is to connect you with local history through engaging content and walking tours. Local Historia is owned by public historians Matt Maris and Dustin Elder, who co-author this column. For more, visit localhistoria.com.
Sources
Tyrone Daily Herald. (August 23, 1900). Library Committee Meeting. Newspapers.com. Retrieved September 2, 2024, from https://www.newspapers.com/article/tyrone-daily-herald-library-committee-me/135179144/
Tyrone Daily Herald. (June 7, 1900). Carnegie Library Proposed to Council. Newspapers.com. Retrieved September 2, 2024, from https://www.newspapers.com/article/tyrone-daily-herald-carnegie-library-pro/135179083/
Tyrone Daily Herald. (August 9, 1900). Library Committee formed. Newspapers.com. Retrieved September 2, 2024, from https://www.newspapers.com/article/tyrone-daily-herald-library-committee-fo/135178971/
Tyrone Daily Herald. (August 30, 1900). Library Discussion. Newspapers.com. Retrieved September 2, 2024, from https://www.newspapers.com/article/tyrone-daily-herald-library-discussion/135178929/
Tyrone Daily Herald. (December 6, 1900). No Carnegie Library official article. Newspapers.com. Retrieved September 2, 2024, from https://www.newspapers.com/article/tyrone-daily-herald-no-carnegie-library/135178666/
Tyrone Daily Herald. (December 13, 1900). “The country has enough libraries in it” Tyrone Response. Newspapers.com. Retrieved September 2, 2024, from https://www.newspapers.com/article/tyrone-daily-herald-the-country-has-eno/135178442/
