Display of Pekin Library artifacts

Jared L. Olar

Display of Pekin Library artifacts

Attention all local history or library history buffs:  Currently on display in the Pekin Public Library’s Local History Room is an assortment of artifacts and documents from the library’s past.  Several of them are items that were preserved in the cornerstone time capsule of Pekin’s old Carnegie Library which served the community from 1902 to 1972.  The artifacts will be on display in March and April. Courtesy of Pekin Public Library Public Information and Programming Manager Emily Lambe, a gallery of photographs of the display is presented below.

This photograph from the 1930s shows Pekin’s old Carnegie Library. One of the two cast-iron lamps at the entrance steps was saved when the library was demolished in the early 1970s. The lamp stood in the new library’s plaza until 2014, at which time it was restored and refurbished so it could be moved to the remodeled and expanded library’s new Local History Room.

Share this article

Related Article

On 20 Sept. 1847, a ship that had been aptly christened the...

Jared L. Olar

December 26, 2025

In the roll of German immigrants who became community pillars of Pekin...

Jared L. Olar

November 20, 2025

Stay Informed

Explore Stories from Your Library

Browse past stories, highlights, and updates on local art, events, and library happenings, all gathered in one place.