Color photograph of the front exterior of the Bona Thompson Memorial Library

Description:	This color photograph shows the front exterior of the Bona Thompson Memorial Center in Irvington. This building housed Butler Universitys library when the school was located in Irvington (1875-1928). A September 30, 1903, article in The Indianapolis Journal described the building as ...a low, square building of simple Greek style of architecture. It is made of pressed brick and has a high foundation of stone. Edward and Mary Thompson donated the land and $40,000 to construct the building in honor of their late daughter Bona Thompson, a Butler University graduate. The architects for the building, located at 5350 East University Avenue, were Jesse Johnson and Henry Dupont. The design of the entrance was based on the Erechtheum in Athens, Greece. The building housed Butler Universitys library, which was officially dedicated on December 20, 1903, and officially opened for use on January 11, 1904. Unfortunately, both Edward and Mary passed away in 1902 before the building was completed and some of the furnishings they left behind were used to decorate the library. Although the University opened in 1855, this was the first time that the University had a dedicated library. Before this time, the Universitys small collection of books was located in an available room in one the other buildings on campus. After Butler University moved to the Fairview Park campus in 1928 the building was vacant until the Disciples of Christ purchased it in 1940 and renovated it for use as office space and storage. Currently, the building houses the Irvington Historical Society and it serves as a community center.
Origin:	2010-08-21
Created By:	Childs-Helton, Sally Carr, 1953-
Source:	http://palni.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/BldgsGrnds/id/178
Collection:	Butler University Buildings and Grounds Collection
Rights:	http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Copyright:	In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
Geography:	Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, 39.766501, -86.076849 39.766501 -86.076849
Subjects:	Butler University--Library Academic libraries Public libraries Columns, Ionic Butler College--History Butler University--History Irvington (Indianapolis, Ind.)--History Bona Thompson Memorial Library Bona Thompson Memorial Center Irvington campus Thompson, Bona, 1878-1899

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