Walter Library

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Walter Library, located along Northrop Mall on the University of Minnesota campus, is the current home of the College of Science and Engineering Library, Digital Technology Center, Learning Resources Center, Digital Media Center, College of Science and Engineering Dean’s office, and the Minnesota Supercomputing Institute.HistoryWalter Library was built in 1923 for a total cost of $1.4 million and first opened to the public in 1924 as the University of Minnesota's primary library. It was designed by the architect Clarence H. Johnston, Sr. Like its neighboring buildings, Walter Library was designed in a Roman Renaissance Neoclassical style, featuring a red brick facade with Bedford limestone trim and a colonnaded Ionic Order portico. The library was renovated in December 1999 by the Minneapolis architectural firm Stageberg Beyer Sachs for a sum of $63.4 million.NamesakeWalter Library was named in honor of Frank Keller Walter in 1959. Walter was the University of Minnesota's Librarian for over twenty years, from 1921 to 1943, and participated in the planning of the library.ArchitectureThe renovated library, according to Conrad Schmitt Studios, is a "distinguished marriage of the old and the new." The library houses some of the latest computer technology, while also containing ornate columns and pilasters, marble staircases, vaulted ceilings, and gold leaf gilded interiors. A common motif found within the library is that of an owl, which, according to the Star Tribune, represents both wisdom and knowledge. There are an estimated 225 owl engravings throughout the library.