Originally published in 1939
Some of this information may no longer be current and in that case is presented for historical interest only.
Edited by GET NJ, COPYRIGHT 2003

PUBLIC LIBRARY (open 9 a.m.-8:30 p.m. weekdays, reading room 9 a.m.-10 p.m.; reading room only, 2-9 p.m. Sun.), Jersey Ave. and Montgomery St., of Italian Renaissance design, is constructed of brick, trimmed with granite. It was designed by Brite and Bacon, and opened in 1901. In addition to 381,000 volumes, the library has three notable collections. On the museum floor is the OTTO GOETZKE GEM COLLECTION, probably the world's most complete exhibit of precious and semiprecious stones, representing the 30-year hobby of a Newark jeweler. One of the rarest of the 5,000 specimens is alexandrite, a variety of chrysoberyl found only in the Ural Mts. It is grass-green by day and columbine-red under artificial light. Another unusual specimen is olivine, a greenish pebble mined from Arizona soil by ants. The gems are in charge of the Jersey City Museum Association, which has other exhibits in the Bergen, Pavonia, and Greenville branches of the library. The ALLEN COLLECTION, consisting chiefly of household furnishings and wearing apparel of the 19th century, and the large JOHN D. McGILL COIN COLLECTION are in the main library. The library has 13 branches.

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