The Columbus Branch of The New York Public Library has been a center for education in the multiethnic, working-class neighborhood of Clinton since the branch opened on September 24, 1909.
It is one of 65 libraries built in the early 20th century with funds contributed by Andrew Carnegie. The nucleus of the collection came from the reading room of the Columbus Catholic Club, a social and educational club for young men. In 1901, the club's library was incorporated into the Cathedral Free Circulating Library, and in 1905, as the city's library movement developed, it became part of the New …