This post is the eigth in a series of excerpts serializing the book Feels Like Home.
Chapter 3
The Legacy of the Central Library Fire - by Christina Rice, Senior Librarian, Photo Collection
On the morning of April 29, 1986, librarian Dan Dupill was answering telephone calls at the literature reference desk at Central Library. The antiquated phone system was slow, and the volume of calls high in those pre-Internet days, so getting through to a reference librarian could be a challenge. When the emergency alert started going off, Dan figured it was another false alarm that had become commonplace in the 1926 building. Rather than hanging up on the patron, who had already navigated the phone system once, Dan offered to put them on hold, figuring he would be back in ten minutes. It would be seven years before he answered another phone call at Central Library. He has often wondered just how long the caller stayed on hold before realizing that the building was actually on fire.
I started working at Central Library twenty years after two fires devastated the building and collections in 1986, yet "The Fire," as these events are commonly referred to around here, is a constant presence, even though it's been over 30 years since that dark day. The collections still bear the scars of 1986, with books and periodicals revealing their age and place through visible smoke and water damage, or by the unmistakable scent of fumes absorbed three decades ago. Phantom citations reside in the California Index, which point researchers to materials lost in the Fire, and I still contend with the damage done to the Valley Times image archive where on two separate occasions, condensation formed in the drawers where the photos were stored. These tangible reminders of Central Library's fateful past are only one facet of the Fire's legacy, and while it may be easy to focus on these visible and devastating impacts, there are other legacies of the 1986 events that will be longer-lasting.
As terrible as the 1986 fire at Central Library was, it shone a spotlight on how much the residents of Los Angeles value their libraries. The Fire has gone down in the annals of the Los Angeles Fire Department as one of the hardest to contain, yet the firefighters worked tirelessly for hours because they knew what was at stake. In the days that followed, 1,700 volunteers from all walks of life pitched in to help box up materials to be treated for damage or stored offsite. The Los Angeles Public Library has always served its community, but much like the passage of Measure L during the recent financial downturn, the Fire demonstrated that when the Library needs the community, they will rally in support. I have encountered so many people who vividly remember that day in April, and who walked away from it with an appreciation of public libraries they will never take for granted.
For the staff, who worked round the clock in the immediate aftermath, the Fire also meant being displaced from their home-away-from-home and coming to terms with a loss of collections. Yet, living through the experience, working together, and emerging victorious seven years later created a bond between these staff members that is unique and continues to drive many of them to devote so much of themselves to the Los Angeles Public Library. I have heard many firsthand accounts of that time, some humorous, like the one of putting the phone patron on hold, and others tinged with great sadness. As much of a connection as I have with the vast and deep collections here at Central, I am frequently taken with bond forged between staff members and Central Library that is impossible to comprehend if one didn't live through the events as a library employee.
Central Library reopened 23 years ago, so it's easy to be far removed from its past. While a renovation of the building had been in the works prior to the Fire and would have probably moved forward, the end result would have been vastly different. From these events came a new sense of purpose for Central Library as well as the Los Angeles Public Library system as a whole, and also lead to the formation of the Library Foundation, which has played such a large role in programming and fundraising.
The Fire at Central Library was a horrific event that shouldn't necessarily be celebrated but at the same time should never be forgotten. What can be acknowledged are the actions of thousands of people who rallied around a library to ensure that it would remain for generations to come. That is a legacy worth commemorating.
Christina Rice started with the Los Angeles Public Library in 2005 as a Reference Librarian at the John Muir Branch and the History & Genealogy Department at Central Library. Since 2009 she has been the Senior Librarian of the LAPL Photo Collection. She is the author of Ann Dvorak: Hollywood’s Forgotten Rebel (2013, University Press of Kentucky), and the writer of multiple issues of the My Little Pony comic book series (IDW Publishing). She is currently working on a biography of actress Jane Russell.
Feels Like Home: Reflections on Central Library: Photographs From the Collection of Los Angeles Public Library (2018) is a tribute to Central Library and follows the history from its origins as a mere idea to its phoenix-like reopening in 1993. Published by Photo Friends of the Los Angeles Public Library, it features both researched historical accounts and first-person remembrances. The book was edited by Christina Rice, Senior Librarian of the LAPL Photo Collection, and Literature Librarians Sheryn Morris and James Sherman.The book can be purchased through the Library Foundation of Los Angeles Bookstore.