Queens Public Library

The story

In a single fiscal year, Queens Public Library loaned 13.5 million items — making it one of the largest library systems in the world by circulation. It began in 1858 as a subscription library, with the first branch in Flushing, and the original Central Library in Jamaica didn't open until 1930, eventually expanded into four stories of Renaissance Revival architecture. Today 62 branches serve nearly 2.3 million Queens residents, including one of the largest immigrant populations in the country — a fact that shapes everything the library is.