Title Page | Collection Summary | Biographical/Organizational Note | Scope and Content | Arrangement
Administrative History
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1870, July 8 | Copyright Act centralized U.S. copyright activities at Library of Congress, leading to expansive collection growth |
| 1871, Dec. 1 | Librarian of Congress Ainsworth Rand Spofford advocated for separate building to accommodate rapidly growing Library of Congress collection, then housed in U.S. Capitol |
| 1872, Dec. 1 | Spofford sketched outline of plan for new building to house Library of Congress |
| 1873, Mar. 3 | Congress authorized $5,000 to procure and select architectural designs for new building, established Joint Committee on the Library |
| 1873, Aug. | Joint Committee announced architectural competition, best design plans to be awarded $1,500, $1,000, and $500, 28 designs submitted |
| 1873, Dec. 22 | Joint Committee awarded $1,500 to architectural firm Smithmeyer & Pelz |
| 1874, June 23 | Congress appropriated $2,000 for Joint Committee to procure additional design plans |
| 1880, June 8 | Congress established Joint Select Committee on Additional Accommodations for the Library of Congress |
| 1880, Nov. 15 | Architects Edward Clark, Alexander Rice Etsy, and John L. Smithmeyer recommended separate building rather than Capitol expansion, submitted description of plans |
| 1886, Apr. 15 | Congress authorized fireproof building for Library of Congress to be built east of Capitol in Italian Renaissance style architecture according to Smithmeyer's plans, appropriated $500,000 for construction and $550,000 for site purchase, appointed Joint Select Committee including Secretary of the Interior, Architect of the Capitol, and Librarian of Congress |
| 1886, Aug. 5 | Congress appropriated additional sum of $35,000 to purchase site |
| 1886, Oct. 1 | Smithmeyer employed as architect at $5,000 per year |
| 1886, Oct. 13 | Paul J. Pelz hired as principal draftsman at $3,000 per year |
| 1886, Oct. 28 | Began site clearing |
| 1887, Apr. 15 | Awarded contract to Elias E. Barnes for cellar and area excavations |
| 1888, Jan. 24 | Congressional investigation into Barnes's contract to furnish cement and stone for foundation |
| 1888, Mar. 19 | Bernard R. Green appointed superintendent and engineer at $4,000 per year |
| 1888, Oct. 2 | President Grover Cleveland appointed T. L. Casey, brigadier general and chief of engineers of the U.S. Army, to direct construction of Library building |
| 1888, Oct. 3 | John L. Smithmeyer discharged |
| 1889, Mar. 2 | Congress approved General Casey plan, $6.5 million for construction |
| 1890, Aug. 28 | Laid cornerstone |
| 1890, Nov. | Granite shipments delayed due to strikes |
| 1892, May 1 | Paul J. Pelz discharged |
| 1892, Dec. | General Casey appointed Edward Pearce Casey architect for interior design |
| 1894, Jan. 26 | General Casey and Superintendent Green met with sculptors John Quincy Adams Ward, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and Olin Levi Warner to plan interior statuary |
| 1896, Mar. 25 | Died, Brigadier General T. L. Casey, Washington, D.C. |
| 1896, Apr. 2 | Superintendent Green took charge of Library building |
| 1896, July 9 | Names of engineers and architects inscribed above commemorative arch in Great Hall |
| 1897, Feb. 19 | Congress appropriated funds for custody, care, and maintenance of Library Building and Grounds |
| 1897, Apr. 29 | Green reported $6 million spent for Library building |
| 1897, June 30 | President Cleveland appointed Green superintendent of Library Building and Grounds at $5,000 per year effective July 1 |
| 1897, Nov. 1 | Opened to public, new building for Library of Congress |
| 1897, Nov. 20 | Completed transfer of Library collection from Capitol to new building |
| 1914, Oct. 22 | Died, Superintendent Bernard R. Green, Washington, D.C. |
| 1915, Apr. 19 | President Woodrow Wilson appointed engineer Frank L. Averill superintendent of Library Building and Grounds at $3,000 per year |
| 1922, May 31 | Resigned, Superintendent Frank L. Averill |
| 1922, May 20 | President Warren G. Harding nominated Harriet De Krafft Woods superintendent of Library Building and Grounds effective June 1 |
| 1922, June 29 | Congress abolished office of superintendent of Library Building and Grounds, transferred duties to Architect of the Capitol and Librarian of Congress, Woods appointed administrative assistant and disbursing officer at $3,000 per year |
| 1928, June 11 | Librarian of Congress Herbert Putnam designated William C. Bond superintendent of Library Building and Grounds and Wade H. Rabbitt disbursing officer after Woods retired |
| 1928, June 13 | Putnam reported an auxiliary building was needed to accommodate growing collection, recommended site behind Main Building |
| 1930, June 13 | Congress appropriated $6.5 million for construction of Annex Building and tunnel to Main Building |
| 1931 | Architect of the Capitol David Lynn selected Frank G. Pierson and A. Hamilton Wilson as architects and Alexander B. Trowbridge as consultant architect who designed Annex in Art Deco and traditional Beaux-Arts style |
| 1935, June 6 | Congress appropriated additional $2.9 million to construct Annex |
| 1939, Jan. 3 | Opened to public, Annex |
| 1948, June 30 | Retired, Superintendent William C. Bond |
| 1950, Apr. 10 | Librarian of Congress Luther Harris Evans appointed Merton J. Foley as chief, Buildings and Grounds Division |
| 1980, June 13 | Renamed Main Building, Thomas Jefferson Building; renamed Annex, John Adams Building |