Georgetown Recovery and Restoration Fund

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What's the latest?

As we close 2009 the Georgetown Library is a very active construction site: the temporary roof has been removed and one can see fall foliage open to the sky from the second floor. The lower level is dirt, massed with excavators and small bulldozers, a hole for a grand central staircase has been cut into the middle of the shell, and the interior is a maze of support beams, struts, and scaffolds. The shapes of new and grand spaces are emerging. The library is on track to open in the Fall of 2010.

The emphasis for the past few months has been on creating the expanded lower level, building terraces at the front and rear of the building, and beginning roof replacement. The new Georgetown Library will look and feel like a historic building, but with significant upgrades in resources, comfort and modern amenities. Our goal is to make it feel like a fire never happened.

Frankly, we need your help. There is no government funding for restoration of Peabody books, photos, artwork or documents. We have accomplished much, but there is more to do. With the help of generous donors, we have restored 74 historic volumes and a family bible, provided restoration materials and supplies, funded triage of the entire collection, and restored three original paintings – including the portrait of Yarrow Mamout, a freed African slave who lived in Georgetown. The current Peabody Fund is depleted leaving 30 books, 41 works of art, and a host of historic photographs unrestored. These materials were printed in Georgetown, belonged to Georgetown residents, and often contain personal annotations or signatures.

We estimate a need of $125,000 to fully restore the historic collections of the Georgetown Library, the finest historic neighborhood archives in the United States – dating back three centuries. Won’t you help restore and preserve this invaluable community asset?

For more detailed information, please read the latest Georgetown Insider Update.

Thank you to all those who have and will contribute! To volunteer, please contact Mark Greek at 727-1446.

Donations may be made by clicking the box below, or by check payable to "DC Public Library Foundation" sent to:

DC Public Library Foundation
901 G St, NW #400
Washington, DC 20001

All donations will be acknowledged and are fully tax-deductible. Inquiries, please contact Anna Velazco at: 202-727-4943

Over 300 donors nationwide have given to the DC Public Library Foundation’s Georgetown Library Recovery and Restoration Fund. The Fund now stands just shy of $150,000 with donations arriving regularly. Won’t you consider a gift to help us reach the $275,000 mark?