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The Carnegie Library opened December 1, 1902. It was built on land donated by John Donovan and the South St. Joseph Town Company with construction funds donated by the Andrew Carnegie Foundation. It was one of the first branch libraries in Missouri. The building is a one story and basement building of brick and stone with an interior of oak, marble and plaster. The Carnegie Library proudly houses a Loving Cup originally given to John Donovan in 1908 by the citizens of St. Joseph. It was donated to the library by his family in 1913.

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The Downtown Library is the oldest branch in the St. Joseph Public Library system, which was founded in 1890. The Downtown Library opened on March 13, 1902, and was originally built to house both the Public Library and School District Administrative offices. In 2022 SJPL purchased the building from the St. Joseph School District. We are looking forward to our new partnership with Northwest Health Services who purchased the building in 2024, with SJPL signing a 100-year lease. The beautiful and historic Downtown Library boasts a terrazzo floor in the foyer, glass floored balcony, marble, wonderful frieze and ceiling moldings showcasing a stunning stained glass dome, all in a beaux arts architectural style.

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The East Hills Library opened on September 12, 2004 and is a thoroughly modern library. It is our only branch built in the 21st century. The building features several statuary pieces, two large faux Ming vases and a collection of hanging Vintage Victory Posters that were issued at the beginning of World War II, using World War I images. In addition to the library, we lease space to the Convention and Visitors Bureau for a Visitors’ Center.

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The land for the Washington Park Library was donated by the St. Joseph Extension Company in honor of Washington Jones, a prominent community leader in St. Joseph in the early 1900′s. This friendly Northside library opened on June 23, 1910 and was built with funds from the Andrew Carnegie Foundation. The building has exterior architectural features such as open books and holly berry decorations. The library boasts many original oak furnishings such as the circulation desk, stack shelving, book display shelves, library tables and interior staircase. A significant interior architectural detail is a quote above the main doorway by Andrew Carnegie “The universal education of its people is the greatest glory of the state.”