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Q What’s up with the building on 43rd Street between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues labeled “New York Public Library”? It doesn’t seem to be an active branch of the library. What’s really going on in there?—Caren Cee, Manhattan
A Actually, Caren, it may be the most active branch of all—but you’d never know it. The New York Public Library Annex at 521 West 43rd Street is for internal use only, operating as a hub for processing large archival collections. “We recently handled Katharine Hepburn’s letters, diaries, photos and scripts,” says NYPL spokesperson Herb Scher. In other words, librarians here sift through fragile archives, place items of note in acid-free boxes, label and log them and make the collections cohesive for both display and storage. Other archival projects have included the Barbara Gittings and Kay Tobin Lahusen Collection (materials from two gay-and-lesbian-rights pioneers) and the Paddy Chayefsky Collection (featuring correspondence from Charlie Chaplin, Frank Lloyd Wright and Tennessee Williams).
—Kristyn Pomranz
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