Carnegie Public Library

The Carnegie Public Library, built between 1906 and 1908 by W.J. Newton, is a public library located on St. James Street. It features an ashlar facade with coursed sandstone side walls and a slate roof that has two ventilators on the ridge. The building is designed in the Renaissance style, comprising five bays and two storeys. The ground floor exhibits channelled rustication, while the first floor is adorned with a Corinthian pilaster and a dentilled string course, topped by a dentilled cornice and a balustraded parapet.

On the right side, there is a door with a keystone that features the face of Shakespeare, set within an Ionic porch with polished columns. The ground floor has four rectangular windows, each with figured keystones representing literary figures such as Dante and Milton. Above the balustrade, which is false except over the porch, are five round-headed windows. A frieze inscribed with "CARNEGIE PUBLIC LIBRARY" adds to the building's character.

Inside, there is a large stairlight with stained glass in the Art Nouveau style, featuring the phrases "KNOWLEDGE IS POWER" and "A LIGHT TO GUIDE," along with the Accrington Corporation Coat of Arms and its motto "INDUSTRY AND PRUDENCE CONQUER." The library is adjacent to the Mechanics Institution.