New York Public Library, New York (must see)

Also known as the Stephan A. Schwartzman Building, the Main Branch of 42nd Street Library is an embodiment of the New York Public Library system. It is located on Fifth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets. It shares the block with Bryant Park. The structure is a Beaux-Arts gem of a building.

The Astor and Lenox Libraries were merged in 1895. An imposing main branch was needed to house the newly formed New York Public Library. The perfect site for the new building was under the old obsolete Croton Distributing Reservoir. The architectural firm of Carrere and Hastings was selected to design and build the new library.

On May 24, 1911, the library opened to the public. The first volume borrowed from the library's collection was "Ethical Ideas of Our Time: a study of Nietzsche and Lev Tolstoy" by Russian philosopher and writer Nikolai Grot. During the first week of its operation, the library received 250,000 visitors and patrons.

The exterior of the library building is of Vermont marble and brick. Windows, doors, and fixtures are bronze. Pediments installed above the central entrance hold sculptures of "Life," "Painting," and "Sculpture." A balcony wraps the Fifth Avenue elevation.

At the main entrance, a grand staircase leads to a portico with six Corinthian columns and three archways. Two lions of Tennessee marble guard the staircase on either side.