32 fall 2014 www.stowawaymag.

com 33
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Carnegie
Legacy
Picture it. New York City. Tickets to a special concert at Carnegie Hall. You walk
through the renovated main levels with a sense of awe for all the history breathing
within this space. As always, the season lineup is variedchildrens concerts, local
orchestras, and big-name performers. For its season opener in October 2014, the
Berliner Philharmoniker will honor the hall.
New York Citys Carnegie Hall is
well known not only for its history
but also for its continuing role as an
epicenter for cultural enhancement
through its many music education
programs and stellar performances. It
is a shining gift and a treasure.
But did you know there are other
music halls and libraries around the
world that also bear the name of
Carnegie? Some sources say there
have been up to 2,500 of them. In
many of these buildings, the legacy of
Andrew Carnegie lives on today. We
will look at Andrew Carnegies legacy
and then glimpse four of the build-
ings that bear his name.
Building a Legacy
of Carnegie Halls
Andrew Carnegie was born in
Dunfermline, Scotland, in 1835 and
immigrated to America with his
family at the age of 12. He worked
hardand became expert at what-
ever he triedgoing from telegraph
operator to one of the wealthi-
est men alive at the turn of the
twentiethcentury.
Carnegies rise to the top taught
him many things. He learned that
sheer determination and savvy
investing could take him places. But
laterin his career, he also embraced
the idea that his wealth would do
him no good if he held onto itand
he became a legendary philanthro-
pist, giving away through gifts and
trusts every cent he made, and leav-
ing nothing to his posterity.
Andrew Carnegie knew the
value of public libraries because he
didnt always have access to a private
library. The rst Carnegie building
was a public library built in 1883 in
his hometown in Scotland. Over the
years, countless recipients have ben-
eted directly from his gifts in the
form of libraries and music halls built
across the United States and abroad.
Over the years, many of these
libraries and halls have dwindled into
obscurity, only to be condemned and
torn down. Yet some of these cultural
centers have been saved by their
communities and continue to fulll
cultural and educational needs in
outstanding ways.
By Laura Jackson
Opposite page: Nestled in the Allegheny Mountains, Carnegie Hall in Carnegie,
Pennsylvania, serves more than 75,000 patrons annually. Above: Carnegie Hall in NYC is a
timeless monument. Compare these photos taken in 1963 and in 2008.
The