Carnegie Public Library and adjacent gates

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 19 July 2022 to correct a typo in the text and reformat to current standards

SK 43 SE 4/39

PARISH OF LONG EATON TAMWORTH ROAD (West Side) Carnegie Public Library and adjacent gates

GV II

Public library and adjacent gate. 1906, by architects Gorman and Ross. Art Nouveau style. Built for Long Eaton Urban District Council. Red brick with ashlar dressings and plinth, plus recessed frieze of small blue glazed tiles just below the eaves. Hipped Westmorland slate roof with belled, overhanging eaves. Single storey and three bays. Advanced central bay has deeply coved arch with lintel just above eaves level and a semi-circular headed pediment. This is flanked by slightly lower abutments, each with segment headed panels above the eaves. The bay is approached by two flights of steps with a central platform which has a curved parapet.

The arch is filled by a large grid-like glazed screen with bevelled glass and has inappropriate 1960s replacement doors to centre. Above, the pediment has small dentillations round the edge and a mosaiced tympanum with the figure of Learning set against a golden sunburst. The lintel is inscribed 'Free Library' in Art Nouveau script. To either side the abutments have tall thin windows set in raised brick panels, each flanked by plain stone pilaster strips with scrolled tops. The panels above are filled with gold mosaic, inscribed 'Pax' to south and 'Lux' to north.

To either side of the central bay are the downpipes which have stylish bracketed hopper heads, and beyond to either side, there are canted bay windows with tapering stone work below and Egyptian style stone pilasters to either side. The windows have narrow side lights and a shallow band of grid glazing, like the central screen, to the base of each light. There is a similar, but not identical, window to the north elevation. Large 1960s addition to north west corner of no interest.

Interior has the original glazed grid-like entrance screen and fine Art Nouveau ironwork roof to the rear section of the building. There is also a contemporary stained glass window by Stoddart of Nottingham.

Approximately 7 metres to east of the main entrance is a pair of free-standing iron gates, all that now remains of the original Art Nouveau railings that encircled the library. Both gates have a decorative panel to centre and a band of pierced circles running across about midway up.

Listing NGR: SK4901433380