NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee State Library and Archives is hosting an open house on Tuesday, April 13 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. CDT in their new building on Bicentennial Mall at the intersection of Rep. John Lewis Way N. and Jefferson St. in Nashville. Library and Archives staff will be available to explain the building’s new features and work done in each area as visitors take self-guided tours.
The new facility has much-needed space to properly house the Library and Archives’ extensive collections, improved climate controls and increased handicapped access. The larger 165,000 square foot building and the latest technologies to improve efficiency will increase capacity by nearly 40 percent from 542,700 to 759,500 items. The new building also has classroom, meeting and research space for students, historians, librarians, archivists, genealogists, lawyers and groups of up to 300.
The new Library and Archives building is fully ADA compliant and has many accessibility improvements for Tennesseans with disabilities. As the home of Tennessee’s Library for Accessible Books and Media and Early Literary Resource Center, the Library and Archives is a resource for adults and children with disabilities. The Library and Archives offers more than 240,000 book and magazine titles found in a traditional public library in audio, braille, or large print format through these programs.
