Library


This shows the front of our 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.
 
This is a photo of a group of students sitting below one of the larger south stained glass windows depicting a student's journey through college.
 
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.
 
This is a depiction of the college as it was seen in 1902 that was painted for our 2017 sesquicentennial celebration. This painting was commissioned by Todd Williams.
 
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.