Turn the page for photos of each branch and more information.
See also: - Colfax is moving quickly -- and we're going along for the ride - Best Denver Public Library News -- 2013 -- Increased hours - Best Site for Amateur Historians -- 2012 -- Denver Public Library
The Sarah Platt "Decker" branch -- named for the woman's suffrage movement leader -- opened on June 17, 1913. Decker was the first woman to lie in state at the Colorado State Capitol when she died. Designed in the English cottage style, the building was designated as an historic landmark in 1984 by the Denver Landmark Preservation Commission. The interior is decorated with early twentieth century murals. The General Roger Williams "Woodbury" branch, which opened July 9, 1913, was named for Woodbury, a newspaper, railroad and bank executive who became one of the founders of the Denver Public Library and first Library Board President. Designed in the Italian "Florentine" Renaissance-style, the building was added to the National Register for Historic Places in 1989. Both 100-year-old branches were part of Denver's original Carnegie libraries, which were paid for by steel-magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie between 1913 and 1920. Five of the Carnegie libraries are still in operation, including Decker, Woodbury, Byers (1914), Smiley (1918) and Park Hill (1920).The largest Carnegie library in Denver was in Civic Center Park; today it's known as the McNichols building, and is an events center and headquarters for the city's CreateDenver program.
