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In the late 19th century, New York’s old Croton Reservoir was torn down, with the idea that its replacement would quench a different kind of thirst. Over one hundred years later, the spot is home to the fifth-largest library in the world, serving as the main hub of knowledge for the American metropolis, and lion statues.
Designed in the Beaux Arts style by the firm Carrère and Hastings, the library officially opened in 1911 to great fanfare, with U.S. President William Taft presiding over the inaugural ceremonies. Either out of bliss or the sheer stress of opening the country’s largest marble structure at that time (one can hope it was the former), library staff never officially counted the building’s first week of visitors, but guessed it to be around 250,000. Just enough folks to fill the regally appointed Rose Reading Room.
While literature is of course the main impetus to visit, including one of only forty-eight known original copies of the Gutenberg Bible, two stoic felines continue to steal the show for locals and tourists alike. The iconically imposing marble lions have had a few name changes over the years: first, “Leo Astor” and “Leo Lenox” in honor of the library’s founders. Then, “Lord Astor” and “Lady Lenox” (even though both statues portray male lions). Finally, they were named “Patience” and “Fortitude” by Mayor La Guardia in the 1930s, as he felt these were the virtues New Yorkers needed to get through the Great Depression. Featured in numerous cultural media, the lions’ likenesses are used as the official logo of the New York Public Library. Just like the real animal, they also have a lair—a 2 story basement beneath the library that holds 4 million books and reading materials. Unlike the real animal, they don’t mind if one walks past them to check it out.
Serving New York City for over one hundred years, it’s no surprise that the main library is one of the city’s most treasured buildings. For such a famous spot, it also remains quite public, providing spaces for research not just for New Yorkers but for someone just visiting or passing by. Patience and Fortitude, however, would probably recommend getting that library card.
