Andrew Carnegie's $25,000 Gift for Walla Walla
After persistent lobbying by the local Commercial Club, the industrialist agrees to fund a new public library—if the city commits to ongoing maintenance.
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As a result of the work of the committee of the Commercial Club, composed of Miles C. Moore, A. K. Dice, and T. R. Eastman, Walla Walla is in a fair way to secure from Andrew Carnegie a donation of $25,000 for the erection of a public library. In response to the committee's appeal, Carnegie's secretary, James Bertram, wrote: 'If the city will agree by resolution of council to maintain a free library at the cost of not less than $2,500 a year, and provide a suitable site for the building, Mr. Carnegie will be pleased to furnish $25,000 to erect a free public library for Walla Walla.' The communication will be presented to the city council by the Commercial Club committee at its next meeting.
“It is a city of schools, numbering among its numerous educational institutions Whitman college, named to perpetuate the memory of the pioneer martyr and missionary, Marcus Whitman.”
This 1903 correspondence marks the origin of the Walla Walla Public Library, a civic cornerstone still in operation today. The Carnegie library movement fundamentally shaped the civic infrastructure of Washington State, often setting the precedent for public, tax-funded support of information access that remains a flashpoint in contemporary budget debates.
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