Library
Before the building was renovated in 2002 to become the library, it housed a chapel,
a swimming pool and the gymnasium. The incredible remodel from gymnasium to library
was the topic of architectural magazines and awards. Displays of historical items
important to Peru State College can be found throughout the main floor of the library.
5A. Eight Windows. The stained-glass windows in the library were commissioned in 2006.
Artist Cindy Kessler’s “Eight Windows” represent the previous uses of the building
that now houses the Library and a student’s journey through college. The smaller windows
along the east wall of the Library are for the past uses of the building: Art Department,
Science Building, Chapel, Gymnasium and Roller Rink.
5B. Telescope. The telescope on the Faculty Resource level (visible from the main
floor of the library) was used by Edison Petit, name-sake astronomer of Petit Craters
on the moon and Mars. In the mid-1880s the telescope was housed in an observatory
in the general area of the T.J. Majors building.
5C. Legacy of Nebraska painting for Nemaha County by Todd Williams. Williams’ impressionistic
oil painting is based on a photo of the Peru State campus quad in 1924. The painting
features a Model T Ford, students and iconic campus buildings including the current
library with its original roofline. It can be found to the north of the main desk
after entering the west doors on the main level.