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The Auld Public Library


category : Historic Buildings
The Auld Public Library The Auld Public Library, 1917-1918, is a gift of William Thomas Auld, uncle of Jessica Cather Auld's husband, J. W. (Bill) Auld. Jessica was one of Willa's younger sisters. He gave the city of Red Cloud $20,000 in early April, 1917. On April 9th, Dr. Robert Damerell, then Mayor of Red Cloud, selected nine individuals to serve as members of the first Library Board and charged them with the responsibility of selecting and purchasing a site, choosing an architect, erecting a building, and purchasing fixtures and books for a new library. Prominent among that group of citizens was Charles Cather, father of Willa. The building was constructed at a cost of $15,500 and formally opened on March 8, 1918. Later that same year, Willa Cather's My Antonia was published in October and World War I ended in November.

The library houses 10,000 volumes and has a good children's section. The library is Red Cloud's most recent addition (1993) to the National Register of Historic Places.


Hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Friday and Saturday afternoons 2-5 p.m., Thursdays 2-7 p.m.
Address: 402-746-3352

Come visit us in Red Cloud, Nebraska

Attractions and Upcoming Events

Chief Red Cloud

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Red Cloud, NE Famous People

Webster County Courthouse

Built in 1914, the Webster County Courthouse is a recent addition to sites already listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The building as distinctive ornamentation and is of the second Renaissance Rival stylistic influence. Located on the Courthouse Square is the 1887

Red Cloud, NE Historic Courthouses

Willa Cather State Historic Site

The Farmers' and Merchants' Bank building, 1889, was erected by Silas Garber, the founder of Red Cloud (1871), the fourth governor of Nebraska (1875-1879), and the prototype for Captain Forrester in A Lost Lady.

Red Cloud, NE Historic Sites

Starke Round Barn

Nebraska's largest round barn and one of the nation's largest, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in April 1972, and is still in use today. It was built in 1902-3

Red Cloud, NE Historic Buildings

The Methodist Church

[The Methodist Church] The Methodist Church building described in My Antonia , now serves as a Masonic Lodge. Cather tells how, during the winter, the children were starved for color and how they stood in the cold and looked at the stained glass windows: "

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Things to do Historic Buildings near Red Cloud, NE

Starke Round Barn

The Red Cloud Opera House

Zephyr Cafe Building

The State Bank Building

First United Methodist Church