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Because there has been both recent and considerable discussion concerning the renovation of our library, readers may be interested to learn of various library aspects as recorded in the 1967 Dedication Program. » John David Lipscomb At the Library The building was remodeled and dedicated in January 1959, as the Kerr County Memorial Library. In 1965, Mr. and Mrs. Howard E. Butt proposed to erect a modern library as a memorial to Butt and Holdsworth family members in response to a needed library expansion. LIBRARY HISTORY A Fine Arts League was organized in 193] with the Literary Club’s purpose to establish a library. The league disbanded in 1936, but the club continued to pursue the goal of a permanent library for the area. The Texas Presbyterian College house on Westminster Encampment became the first library site with nine books. That location is on the present day Schreiner University campus. Books were loaned out at 3 cents per day and both the club membership and the book inventory grew. In 1939, the library moved 1,300 books into two rooms of Capt. Charles Schreiner’s home. Later, the Kerrville Library Association was formed when the Literary Club and the library separated A bankruptcy situation of a church combined with $7,500 from library supporters resulted in the first library-owned building. APPRECIATION Comments of gratitude written in the 1967 Dedication Program by Howard E. Butt and Mary Holdsworth Butt begin with family members no longer present to naming community members who supported the library during the 18 months of construction CONSTRUCTION CREDIT Architects for a building designed in a circular form were Christian, Bright and Pennington of Corpus Christi; project librarian was Phyllis Burson with building construction directed by J.H. McDonald of San Antonio. H. Durward Thompson of Corpus Christi, the landscape architect, spent a year enhancing the natural beauty of the site. A bird sanctuary was created by adding adapted plants with berry production to the site. INTERIOR FURNISHINGS All interior furnishings were selected by a citizens committee and purchased using an initial fund of $50,000 with half being federal monies. Additional cash gifts were required later, which brought the total to almost $75,000 THE MURAL On the top level of the building. Merrill D. Doyle created a 21-foot by 9.5-foot mural depicting important events in Kerr County history during the period from 1534 to 1887. A partial list of these subjects includes: * Cabeza De Vaca with three companions, the first Europeans to reach the Guadalupe River. * Philip Nolan, the first Anglo in the area. ¢ Bandera pass, the setting for many ambushes. ¢ Longhorn cattle, descendants of the cattle brought by Spaniards and found roaming the hills © Camel Fort at Camp Verde, established as an experiment in 1836. While successful, the project was abandoned in 1863. © Sheep and goats, introduced in 1857, Kerr County was to become a major wool and mohair center. © The Railroad, which came to Kerrville in 1887 (the San Antonio and Arkansas Pass Railroad). THE MOSAICS On the southeast exterior of the building, five mosaic panels were installed adjacent to a stone wall connected to the amphitheater. Each mosaic depicts a scene from children’s literature: Alice in Wonderland, Tom Sawyer, Peter Pan, Tiny Tim and Jody with his yearling. Selina Saur worked at her family’s farm near Comfort for about six months to create the mosaics. Each required an initial paper design then pieces of glass were cut and glued into place. AMPHITHEATER The amphitheater is constructed of five semicircular tiers descending to a brick paved terrace. The same types of bricks used in the terrace were used in the treads of the tiers. Green tiles handcrafted by Harding Black of San Antonio were set into the risers of the tiers. Thirty tiles providing different illustrations from classic children’s stories and DEDECATION PROGRAM BUTT HOLD Recovery Tee SWORRTH LIBRARY thew all crafted by Mary Green of San Antonio were interspersed with the green tiles. GAZEBO A small Victorian gazebo, a feature of the previous Schreiner home, was preserved and became part of the total design. John David Lipscomb reports monthly on events at or related to the Butt-Holdsworth Memorial Library. Sarvangy, ‘00 AM A copy of the library dedication program from Aug. 26, 1967.
Newspaper Details
Kerrville Daily Times
Kerrville, Texas, US
Thu, Dec 10, 2009
Page 13
Full Page
Clipped by
Jeannie B.
TX, USA 12 Jun 2026
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