Support Us Button Widget

Louisville’s Main Library ranked No. 8 most beautiful in US

The York Street branch finished just below libraries in New York, Boston, and the Library of Congress.

Loutoday_Main Library lobby

The Carnegie lobby features barrel-vaulted ceilings, marble columns, neo-Renaissance murals, and staircases with bronze and iron railings.

Photo by LOUtoday

When it comes to libraries, it turns out that LFPL is a real page turner.

Sport + entertainment publication Yardbarker released a ranked list featuring “20 of the most stunning libraries in the United States,” and the Louisville Free Public Library’s Main Branch made the cut.

Yardbarker ranked the York Street branch No. 8 on its list, below the Library of Congress and the New York Public Library, but ahead of the Los Angeles Central Library and the Indianapolis Central Library, among others — eat your heart out, INDYtoday.

The publication called the Main Library, “gorgeous and palatial,” and noted that the interior features, “beautiful staircases with ornate railings and striking white marble columns and floors.”

The Main Branch first opened in 1908, and it expanded in the 1960s. Check out the full history of the branch and the future of an $11 million renovation project.

More from LOUtoday
Keep your plumbing safe and sound this winter.
Louisville’s baseball stadium could soon have some new neighbors — a hotel, offices, and retail.
Louisville is made up of so many wonderful small businesses, here are a few our readers love in honor of Small Business Saturday.
The White Oak Ridge Loop is a 2-mile addition to the Red Trail.
The sixth annual event brings ice-skating, holiday shpping, and the inaugural Skillet Curling Competition to Paristown.
Dig into LOU’s must-try pizza shops including Lupo, The Post, and Mozzapi.
The Bow Wow Meow Holiday Basket Boutique benefits the Animal Care Society.
I’ll take LOU for 502, Alex.
It wil serve as the centerpiece of Light Up Louisville on Dec. 7