WALNUT CREEK, CALIFORNIA – Several local libraries in the 925 just got a big windfall.
Tens of thousands of dollars are flowing to the libraries from a wealthy, generations-old foundation–and patrons like us will be the ones to benefit!
The library system says the Antioch, Concord, and Walnut Creek branches have each been selected to receive $10,000 from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, for a total of $30,000 countywide. (Contra Costa County Library)
The gifts are part of a nationwide effort connected to the upcoming 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 2026.
Why these three branches?
The short version: history.
Andrew Carnegie famously funded the construction of more than 1,600 free public libraries across the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s. In Contra Costa County, the library notes it successfully requested Carnegie support in 1914 for library buildings in Antioch, Concord, and Walnut Creek.
So Carnegie has been funding those specific libraries for over a century!
Even though the county library system says it does not have any existing Carnegie buildings today, those original branch libraries are the reason these communities qualify for the gift.
What the library says the money will do
According to the library, the funding will be used to “enhance and expand programs and collections” tailored to the needs of the three communities.
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A quick note on the old buildings
The library included some local history with the announcement:
- The original Antioch Carnegie Library is still standing at 519 F Street, and later housed a senior center, recreation department, and historical center, according to the library.
- The original Concord Carnegie building served as a library until 1959 and was later demolished.
- Walnut Creek’s Carnegie-era library was dedicated August 22, 1916, served until 1959, and was demolished in 1961.
What happens next
The library has also indicated it had not yet determined exactly how the funds will be spent, but that they appear to be intended for the benefit of each of the respective libraries.
At $10,000 per branch, this is not a building-renovation kind of check — but it can go a long way toward the stuff patrons actually feel day-to-day: fresh books, more programs, and the like.
