Do you know if Andrew Carnegie made any statements about public libraries offering programming for patrons?”
Carnegie had two main reasons for donating money to the founding of libraries. First, he believed that libraries added to the meritocratic nature of America. Anyone with the right inclination and desire could educate himself. Second, Carnegie believed that immigrants like himself needed to acquire cultural knowledge of America which the library allowed immigrants to do. Libraries for Carnegie were the ultimate extension of democracy to the people. Carnegie saw the library as a way of personal betterment, and thus the improvement of society. He felt that the sheer existence of a library and the individual’s right to use it was essential. He did not see the library as needing to reach out, but rather to allow in anyone who wished to come. His formal education ended at the age of 12 and he was exceedingly affected by being unable to afford the $2.00 per week fee to join the “free” library, so he resolved that libraries should be free and open to everyone. That is why over the doors of The
