“What the hell is this building?” It’s safe to say that this thought, or a variation thereof, pops into the minds of many Penn students the first time they notice the pale stone structure on the southeast corner of the intersection of 40th and Walnut streets. The 104–year–old, Carnegie–funded building that houses one branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia looks out of place in contrast to FroGro, McDonald’s and the rest of its neighbors on the 40th Street Block, but is easy to dismiss. And though the Walnut Street West FLP location is located right in Penn’s backyard, few Penn students have take advantage of the resources this building actually has to offer.
Stephen Krewson, a recent Penn grad, has been working at the library this past year, in addition to the two previous summers. As an afterschool leader, he has some light to shed on the library from a Penn–centric perspective.
The FLP is used mainly by West Philadelphians and visiting scholars as opposed to Penn students, a fact that Krewson attributes to the library’s non–ideal study atmosphere. “The hours are just not a good fit for Penn students. [The library is never open past 8 p.m.] And it’s often cramped.”
However, just because you can’t buckle down for a 12–hour shift at the FLP doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make use of its assets. With over seven million different items between its 54 branches, including an impressive rare book collection, the library has the ability to function as an extremely useful support to Van Pelt. Krewson boasts that in combining these two invaluable resources, he bought almost no books his senior year.
As if personal benefits weren’t a compelling enough reason to check out FLP, the library has a strong community–oriented program, in which the library recruits bright, motivated college students from around the city to create their own programming in order to foster literacy in Philly youth.
Literature buffs and Good Samaritans alike can find something at the Free Library of Philadelphia. Check out the 40th Street location or any of the other branches located around the city; at the very least, you’ll get your next good read out of your visit.
