Originally, these cities were cataloged by the first Carnegie library historian, George Bobinski. He had a list of hundreds of cities who declined the grant, but only 50 of them he could not find the reasons for declining. I want to pick up where he left off. #librarysky

Strictly ambient-wise, there is something very satisfying about doing research beneath the buzzing, orange glow of old ceiling lights. It's one of the most pleasing aspects of this project - to experience these spaces and indulge in the wisdom offered in each shelf. #librarysky

So sorry for not getting back. I almost forgot I had a Blusky. There are a lot of tell-tale signs. 1) The skin always looks fake, like it's made of putty or wax. 2) Incomprehensible detail, like all the mish-mash blurry faces on the statuettes and inexplicable leaves. 3) The hat. 4) The eye lines.

Or the several pages of research into the Carnegie libraries in “The Mitt” of Michigan. Only 3 exist, but the general history is dense, albeit very, very, VERY BORING. #skystorian #library

Not to mention several digressions into Alvin Johnson, an economics professor who the Carnegie Corp hired to compile a report on how well cities appropriated their funds. #carnegieswildride #library

This is the result! A photo of me taken on a Land Camera 95 by taping a Polaroid 600 sheet to the back of the exposure plate. We then had to remove the sheet in a darkroom bag, load it into a Sun 660, and take a blank photo so the chemicals could be rolled out evenly. Insanity! #instantfilm

Interestingly, many towns who did not receive or could not receive a Carnegie grant hired the same architects, or requested similar plans so as to give the impression of having a Carnegie library. Like Evansville, Wisconsin or Princeton, Illinois (Pictured respectfully) #librarysky

I love that you can tell when Carnegie-granted libraries hired their architects "off the rack. Pictured, respectfully, are the libraries in Tomah and Merrill, Wisconsin; Detroit Lakes, Minnesota; and Rochelle, Illinois. The architects Claude and Starck designed them with minor changes. #librarysky

The Bellingham Carnegie library is no longer with us, and I believe the site is now parking lot. I certainly feel the loss on this one. It was a library for just under 50 years, so I suppose the city got its mileage out of it. #librarysky

I'm empathetic to elderly and disabled people, and I understand forcing patrons to climb up 57 steps to reach enlightenment is absurd. And in the 1950s, ramp and elevator installments just seemed too farcical compared to demolition, which was far easier. But still... #librarysky

Flash-foward a few decades, and the Bellingham Carnegie is now surrounded by buildings, and ivy-stricken (Pictured). The city is more developed, and the library's days are unfortunately numbered. It was demolished in 1953, allegedly for a goddamn parking lot. #librarysky

The last library I want to highlight is the former Carnegie in Bellingham, Washington because it looks like they really pushed that whole "ascent to enlightenment" thing to the extreme. I'm getting strong Bates Motel vibes from it. Crazy how empty the surrounding area is. #librarysky