Serenity is in the very brick and stone of this elegant 1903 Georgian Revival landmark designed by the masterful A. E. Doyle, considered one of the most beautiful buildings in the city. Honoring historians, philosophers, artists and scientists, the exterior walls and benches bear the names of those who continue to shape the Western mind. The towering elms that surround the library also seem to inspire to seek further heights.

Inside, large open archways frame the windows, and the ceilings soar. Under a domed skylight on the third floor that helps create the perfect ambience for learning, the lobby plays a dual role as the Collins Gallery, displaying locally relevant literary arts, such as children’s writers and illustrators. Sometimes the space also moonlights as a stage for some of the city’s most stimulating performers.

First and foremost, this is a library. As one of the largest public buildings in Portland, it serves one-fifth of the state’s population. Its stately presence, however, does not make it stuffy. In fact, it is loved partly for being accessible and so much more.

With all the open space in the three lobbies, the sweeping staircase and impossibly high walls, the library still holds more than 17 miles of shelves, making available approximately 2 million choices to view or borrow, from old newspapers to rare books and DVDs.

An extensive renovation finished in 1997 (which included structural, aesthetic and technological updates) redesigned the reading rooms and desks to accommodate laptops and search stations while preserving the staid, craftsman style of the furnishings. Simple chairs gracefully surround sleek flat panel monitors, which in turn rest on desks of similar design.

Nearly 500 terminals are available throughout the building to help with various levels of searching, from the in-house databases to uncensored access to the Internet. Information staff on every floor explains and complements the electronic resources.

The number of computers in Central Library makes it one of the best places to surf the web and check e-mail for people passing through downtown. While they are there, they can take in an art exhibit, hear a story under the tree in the Children’s Library or find the answer to that question about Portland that has been nagging them since last night’s walk.

Multnomah County Library is the oldest public library west of the Mississippi, with a history that reaches back to 1864. Today, Central Library and the 16 libraries that make up the library system house 490 computer search stations for the public and a collection of 2 million books and other library materials.

As Oregon’s largest public library, Multnomah County Library serves nearly one-fifth of the state’s population with a wide variety of programs and services.

History: What is now the Multnomah County Library dates its existence from 1864, a time when Portland was a frontier town with frame buildings, muddy streets and few sidewalks. A small group of Portland citizens met to establish a subscription library and reading room, organizing under the name “Library Association of Portland.”

On March 10, 1902, the library became a tax-supported free public library, open to all residents of Portland. In 1903, services were extended to all residents of Multnomah County and the Multnomah County commissioners became ex officio members of the library board.

Central Library , located at 801 S.W. 10th in downtown Portland, opened in September 1913. Designed by architect A.E. Doyle, the building took two years to build at a cost of $480,000. The Central Library building, now on the National Register of Historic Places, continues to be the heart of what has become a system of branch libraries that serves library users all over Multnomah County.

On July 1, 1990, after 126 years of guiding the library to the respected community position it currently enjoys, the Library Association of Portland transferred ownership of the library’s buildings, books and other holdings to the people of Multnomah County, to be governed by the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners.

Portland’s Central Library
801 S.W. 10th
Portland, OR
503.988.5402