Harold Washington Library Center - Chicago, Illinois

Address:400 South State St.t
Chicago, Illinois

The Harold Washington Library Center is the central library of the Chicago Public Library System, and at 756,640 square feet and ten stories, it appears in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest public library in the world! The library is an architectural wonder, boasting gigantic five story tall arched windows with rope frenzies, an acroterium, and a winter garden, which is sometimes rented out for social occasions.

The library's entrance floor houses a central lobby and popular library on the main floor, where you can catch up on all the latest Tom Clancy and John Grisham thrillers, as well as a children's library for the kids. The middle stories of the building contain a periodical department, a business and technology section, and a social science and history resource hall. The library also contains a center for the blind on the fifth floor, and a literature and language resource center on the seventh, containing sculptures and works of art by Polish sculptor Jerzy Kenar. An audio visual center on the eighth floor holds visual and performing arts resources, as well as music practice and recording rooms. The ninth floor contains the building's beautiful winter garden, which is a great place for book lovers to get married.

The library is located on the corner of State Street and Jackson Blvd. in downtown Chicago. Admission is free.