The central public library at Newcastle-uponTyne adjoins the old building of the Mechanics' Institute, with which it is incorporated. It was erected in 1882 from the plans of Mr. A. Fowler, at a cost of about .22,000 for buildings and fittings.
The front of the facade is 175 feet in length, and the depth of the building varies from 90 feet to 35 feet. The principal entrance is placed in the centre through a portico, 30 feet long and 8 feet wide. This is ornamented with massive stone columns supporting an entablature, from which springs a continuous row of balustrades running the entire length of the front. The panels over the door and windows are carved with sculpture emblematical of local celebrities and trades. The bays at each end of the building are furnished with a medallion cornice, surrounded by the balustrade, and the roof is semicircular in form. The building is set back a little from the main thoroughfare, and is protected by a dwarf wall surmounted by ornamental railings.
On entering from the portico a large hall is reached, with a grand staircase to the first floor facing the entrance doors, as shown in Fig. 82. To the right is the news-room, measuring 43 feet by 28 feet, with an irregular shaped annexe 30 feet in length. In this room accommodation is given to about forty newspapers on reading stands, and sixty readers at the tables. On the left of the entrance-hall is the lending library, which is contained in two rooms, one a rectangle, 60 feet by
