Mankato Public Library and Reading Room

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

From the record

“The Mankato Public Library and Reading Room is a former library building in Mankato, Minnesota, United States. It was built as a Carnegie library from 1902 to 1903 and housed Mankato's public library until 1977.”
Wikipedia article Mankato Public Library and Reading Room, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 28 National Register listings published here for Blue Earth County · listed in 1980 · category: Building.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 building as contributing to the listing.
Address. 120 S. Broad, Mankato, 56001
When was it listed? July 1980
Category. building
Also known as. Blue Earth County MRA
City. Mankato city
Architectural style. Romanesque Revival architecture
National Register reference number. 80001952 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

The ground it stands on

13,615 words

The chapter on Mankato City in History of Blue Earth County and Biographies of Its Leading Citizens, published 1901 names Mankato. This is what it says, exactly as the scans read.

This year (1869), the county bridge, 353 feet long, was erected over the Blue Earth at West Mankato. During this summer, also, the St. Paul and Sioux City Railroad was extended from Mankato to Crystal Lake. Here a new town was laid out in May, 1869 by Lucius 0. Hunt and Wniiam R. Robinson and named "Lake Crystal." By the time the railway reached this point in September, quite a village had sprung up, where two months before there was only a field to be seen. The Loon Lake Postofiice was discontinued and a new office established at Lake Crystal with Henry Humphrey as first postmaster on September 1, 1869. By December 1, 1869 we note that Lake Crystal possessed a grain elevator, a hotel, built by S. P. Oakley, a two story frame school house, 34x40, a two story frame store, built by Henry Humphrey and occupied with a stock of groceries and drugs by Pomeroy & Wickersham, a store building erected by W. C. Davis and occupied by him with a stock of hardware, a building occupied by Davis & Dunn as general store, another building occupied by P. A. Larfcon with another general store, a harness shop conducted by Wm. Seeger, a cooper shop in charge of Dorwood & McKay, and a doctor's office. H. C. Howard, also, had just sold his flour mill at Shelby Center to Henry Day for $1,600 and his sawmill at the same place to Asa White and S. C. Hilton, who moved it to section three of Mc- Pherson, and had built him a home at Lake

Passage source: History of Blue Earth County and Biographies of Its Leading Citizens, published 1901.

On July 3, 1869 the Republicans of Blue Earth County tried what was known as the Crawford plan of nominating their county officers. This was really a priniar}- election method such as is now in vogue. It happened this year that the Republicans had nine candidates for sheriff and there were three to five candidates each for some of the other offices, and the persons who were nominated, only received onefifth to one-third of the total vote. This caused great dissatisfaction with the Primary Election plan and it was abolished at an election held May 31, 1870, by a vote of 439 to 103. The Republican nominee for sheriff and some of the other nominees of that party for county offices were beaten at the polls. P. H. Waite of Mankato ran as an Independent candidate for Judge of the District Court at this election. Being a Democrat, he was endorsed by his own party, and elected by a good majority over Andrew C. Dunn the Republican nominee.

Passage source: History of Blue Earth County and Biographies of Its Leading Citizens, published 1901.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Mankato City - 13,615 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.

Fires near this property

2 since 2009

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 2 fires within 5 miles of Mankato Public Library and Reading Room between 2009 and 2013, burning about 6 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Railroad operations and maintenance	1
Fireworks	1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
5 July 2013	Fireworks	5.0 acres	Minnesota Department of Natural Resources	not named
16 March 2009	Railroad operations and maintenance	1.0 acres	Minnesota Department of Natural Resources	not named

Every fire recorded in Blue Earth County

Mines and quarries near this property

10 of 11 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 11 workings within 5 miles of Mankato Public Library and Reading Room: 8 producers, 3 occurrences. 8 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Clay, Limestone, Dimension. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status
Blue Earth County Sand Bed	Silica	Occurrence
Blue Earth County Clay Deposit No 1	Clay	Occurrence
Blue Earth County Clay Deposit No 2	Clay	Occurrence
Guaranteed Gravel & Sand Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer
Hanel Sand & Gravel Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer
Mankato Stone Center	Limestone, Dimension, Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer
Vetter Main Quarry & Mill	Limestone, Dimension	Producer
Lundin 8th Ave Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer
Lundin Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer
Mankago Aglime Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer

Every working recorded in Blue Earth County

Storms near this property

60 of 103 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Mankato, the town this property stands in, in 103 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 49 hail, 42 thunderstorm wind, 6 flash flood, 3 heavy rain. The reports record 1 death and 2 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
September 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	1 killed, 1 hurt	A tree branch fell onto a tent at the Land of Memories Park. A family was in the tent and a 4 year old girl was killed from injuries of the fallen tree branch.
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	1 hurt	Measured at law enforcement center. Extensive tree damage. Windows blown out. Semitrailer blown over on highway 14 injuring one person.
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	$20,000,000	Trees down. Roof damage. Estimated windspeed. Damage estimate for entire county.
July 2015	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	$100,000	An amphitheater outer shell was ripped off. It occurred near downtown Mankato, and near the Minnesota River. Several large trees were toppled across town.
July 2003	Tornado (F1)	Mankato	$100,000	The fifth tornado in a series touched down in a corn field, clipped a couple of storage buildings and a lawn care center, then moved across more fields and a meadow before dissipating.
June 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	$25,000	A few trees and power lines were blown down in the city of Mankato. A few trees landed on houses and damaged them.
July 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	$15,000	A large tree blew down and landed on a van.
June 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	$5,000	A large tree fell onto a house southwest of Mankato.
June 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	$500	Winds estimated at 65 miles an hour and dime-size hail were reported in the city of Mankato.
June 1994	Hail	Mankato	$500	Winds estimated at 65 miles an hour and dime-size hail were reported in the city of Mankato.
July 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	$500	The observation site in Mankato recorded a wind gust of 83 mph.
August 2025	Heavy Rain	Mankato	-	Cocorahs station MN-BU-23 Mankato 1ESE. 72 hour storm total of 5.15 inches.
June 2024	Flash Flood	Mankato	-	One to two feet of water was reported near the intersection of Warren St. and Balcerzak Dr.
July 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Strong thunderstorm winds brough down several trees and large branches down in the Skyline neighborhood in Mankato, MN.
July 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Large branches downed from strong thunderstorm wind gusts in Lion Park. Mankato Regional Airport recorded a 50-mph gust at 11:56 PM.
August 2021	Hail	Mankato	-	There was a social media picture of half dollar size hail in Mankato.
August 2021	Hail	Mankato	-	There was a social media picture of golf ball size hail in the western portion of Mankato.
July 2020	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Several large tree branches were blown down in Mankato.
August 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A few trees were blown down in Mankato.
September 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A private weather wind sensor measured a 58 knot wind gust.
August 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A large tree was blown down south of Mankato.
August 2015	Hail	Mankato	-	The hail was photographed.
June 2014	Heavy Rain	Mankato	-	There was a 24 hour measured rainfall amount of 4.75 inches west of Mankato. All of the rain fell late on the 17th and during the early morning hours of the 18th.
September 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Numerous trees were blown down around the city of Mankato. There was also a measured wind gust of 51 mph at the Mankato Airport.
June 2014	Heavy Rain	Mankato	-	There was a 24 hour measured rainfall amount of 5.10 inches southwest of downtown Mankato. All of the rain fell late on the 17th and during the early morning hours of the 18th.
June 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A ten inch diameter tree was blown down south of Mankato.
June 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A few large trees and large branches were blown down around Mankato.
August 2012	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A large tree was blown down across Baker Road.
June 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Power lines were blown down across Highway 169, near Mankato, Minnesota.
June 2010	Flash Flood	Mankato	-	Significant street flooding occurred on the northwest side of Mankato, Minnesota, where some streets south of Highway 14, and west of U.S. Highway 169 were impassable.
June 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Several large trees were uprooted and blocking the intersections of Warren and Highland near Mankato, Minnesota.
July 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Several trees were uprooted between Mankato, to Eagle Lake, Minnesota.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Medium size branch toppled onto automobile. Windshield cracked.
July 2008	Hail	Mankato	-	Hail occurred at Country Rd. 90 and Hwy. 22 intersection.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Several trees reported downed around Mankato.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Six to ten inch diameter trees toppled, four inch diameter tree branches severed.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Minnesota Vikings training camp tents and crowd control fences blown over. Eight inch diameter tree limbs severed off tree at Mankato State University campus. In addition, several other 2 to 4 inch diameter tree branches severed at MSU. Power reported out in some areas near MSU. Three very large trees also reported toppled in Mankato.
August 2007	Flash Flood	Mankato	-	Street flooding in Mankato, with a few cars stranded. Between 0130 and 0300 CST, rain totaled 4.56 inches two miles south of St. Clair. One mile north of Minnesota Lake, 5.32 inches fell as of 0700 CST August 19.
June 2006	Flash Flood	Mankato	-	Mud slide reported on the southern edge of town after several inches of rain had fallen.
June 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A tree collapsed onto a home on Record Street, with another tree falling near the intersection of Mound Avenue and Owatonna Street. Reported by Mankato Free Press.
May 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A trained spotter recorded a wind gust of 62 MPH at the intersection of River Front and Main.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A trained spotter recorded a wind gust of 66 MPH. Numerous trees were downed.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A wind gust of 72 MPH was recorded by a spotter and was relayed via HAM Radio.
April 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A shed and a few trees were downed.
July 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Scattered trees felled.
May 2003	Hail	Mankato	-	Hailed on the northeast side of Mankato.
August 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Scattered trees felled.
August 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Several trees downed.
August 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Trees felled. As reported by Lake Crystal Tribune. Light to moderate damage of approximately 15,000 acres of field corn. Severe damaged sustained to approximately 2000 acres of sweet corn.
June 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Trees and power lines toppled. Estimated windspeed.
August 1999	Flood	Mankato	-	Urban flooding reported within the city limits.. Estimated rainfall of 3.5 inches. Time of event estimated.
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Large branches down. Estimated windspeed.
July 1997	Hail	Mankato	-	Hail fell for 10 minutes.
July 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	10 inch diameter branches down. Estimated windspeed.
July 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	Radio station reported trees down.
June 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Mankato	-	A local radio station recorded a wind gust to 75 mph.
June 2025	Hail	Mankato	-	no account filed
June 2025	Hail	Mankato	-	no account filed
April 2022	Hail	Mankato	-	no account filed
April 2022	Hail	Mankato	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Blue Earth County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Property	Distance	Listed
First Presbyterian Church	under 500 feet	1980
First National Bank of Mankato	0.2 miles	1974
Blue Earth County Courthouse	0.2 miles	1980
Mankato Union Depot	0.2 miles	1980
Federal Courthouse and Post Office	0.2 miles	1980
Old Main, Mankato State Teachers College	0.3 miles	2020

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 80001952 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia article	Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Blue Earth County	All 28 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.