Don L. Love Memorial Library

Plans for a new library were discussed as early as 1911 when Library Hall could no longer support the shelf space needed for the growing collection of books along with its own structural issues. Librarians had dealt with this issue of crowded spacing by spreading collections into 27 different buildings on campus.  Finally in 1940 the library was given a formal recognition by the NU board of Regents, who announced the plans to build Love Library with a generous donation from Lincoln banker, Don L. Love. Out of gratitude for Love’s generous donation of $850,000 for the construction of the library, the Board of Regents decided to name the library after Love: The Don L. Love Memorial Library.  

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Don L. Love was well known in the Lincoln community as vice-president and director of Lincoln State Bank, a lawyer, and two time mayor of Lincoln. He was well known for his generous donations and involvement in the Lincoln community. However, Love passed away in 1940 one year before the groundbreaking of Love Library took place in April of 1941.

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The basic building, currently Love South, was finished in 1943 and was the largest building on campus. Under the circumstances of WWII, instead of the library being used for students it was first utilized for the cadets in the in the Specialized Training program.  From 1943 to 1945, Love Library housed rows of bunks for the cadets. In the fall of 1945 the bunks were removed and rooms refurnished until finally Love Library’s doors were opened to students. The library designed to fit 800,000 collections of books had six large reading rooms, seating for 1,000, one large auditorium, and a student lounge. It was designed to utilize the divisional plan, which was a system of library organization designed to remove barriers to information.  Love Library was designed by architects Davis & Wilson, who had built many of the university buildings at the time. Their design carried on the brick and limestone theme used throughout previous buildings in the first half of the 20th century. By building Love North the library could now hold an extra 500,000 collections of books. When built, Love North had room for a projected growth period of ten years.

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Throughout the years Love library has undergone various renovations, but one of the major changes that occurred in the 21st century was the modernization of Love Library that occurred in 2016. With the completion of the Adele Hall Learning Commons in Love North, the space now includes 18 study rooms a Dunkin Donuts, access to ASKus and Huskertech help centers, and a One Button Studio. The Adele commons is able to accommodate around 500 people and includes an outdoor plaza with tables and seating for patrons. The project was made possible thanks to $7 million in private donations made to the University of Nebraska Foundation.