Use as library

The library was donated to the public by entrepreneur Andrew Carnegie and was dedicated on January 7, 1903. It was designed by the New York firm of Ackerman & Ross in the Beaux-Arts style. It was the first Carnegie library in Washington, D.C., and the District's first desegregated public building.^[2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as "Central Public Library", in 1969.^[1][3] It was used as the central public library for Washington, D.C. for almost 70 years before it became overcrowded. The central library was then moved to Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library. After being shut down for ten years, it was renovated as part of University of the District of Columbia.^[4]

Historical Society of Washington, D.C.

In 1999, it became the headquarters for the Historical Society of Washington, D.C.^[5] The City Museum of Washington opened in the library in May 2003, but closed less than two years later.^[6] In 2014, Events DC twice sought to move the International Spy Museum into the library, but failed to win historic preservation approval.^[7]

Apple Carnegie Library

In September 2016, Apple Inc. proposed renovating the library into D.C.'s second Apple Store location.^[2] In December 2016, Events DC announced an agreement with the company for conversion of the space into a new store designed by Foster and Partners.^[8][9] The building was renamed the Apple Carnegie Library, and the Apple Store within opened on May 11, 2019.^[10] Apple hosts free daily sessions focused on photography, filmmaking, music creation, coding, design and more.

On October 9, 2019,^[11] the first episode of Oprah's Book Club, a television series produced by Apple, was filmed with a live audience in the Library. The episode premiered on November 1 of the same year.^[12]

The building also now houses the DC History Center on the second floor, and the Carnegie Gallery (featuring historic photographs and documents about the origins and history of the building) in the basement.^[13][14]