31. The Countee Cullen Library
The Countee Cullen branch of the New York Public Library was originally housed in a McKim, Mead, and White-designed Carnegie Library on 135th Street. Open in 1905, that building is now part of the Schomburg Center. The current Countee Cullen Library pictured above was built in 1941 when the library outgrew its original location. The new structure at 104 West 136th Street was built on the site of a former townhouse owned by A’Lelia Walker, daughter of beauty product empire builder Madame C.J. Walker.
A’Lelia’s townhouse was a gathering place for artists and writers of the Harlem Renaissance. As a patron of the arts, she threw lavish parties and eventually started renting our parts of the townhouse for events. This event space was called Walker Studio. In 1927, Walker established a short-lived private membership club called “The Dark Tower.” After Walker’s death in 1931, the property was rented to the City of New York. The townhouse was eventually demolished to make way for the library. Ten years after opening, the library was renamed in honor of famed poet, novelist, and poet Countee Cullen. Cullen’s most famous poetry collections, written during the 1920s, include Color, The Black Christ, and Copper Sun.