Huntington Free Library and Reading Room

The story

A railroad magnate saved a library that an entire village refused to accept. Peter C. Van Schaick left money in his will to build a free reading room for West Chester, in what is now the Bronx. The building was constructed between 1882 and 1883, then sat vacant after local townspeople declined to pay for its upkeep. Somehow, Southern Pacific Railroad magnate Collis P. Huntington — whose summer home sat nearby in Throggs Neck — learned of the stalemate, took over the project, added onto the building, and opened its doors in 1891. Today it holds early-20th century materials and a special collection on Bronx history.