Tyrrell Historical and Genealogical Library, located in downtown Beaumont, reopened in January after being renovated from water damage sustained during Hurricane Harvey and Tropical Storm Imelda.
The 119-year-old building, located on the corner of Pearl and Forsythe, sustained minimal damage during the floods, but William Grace, Tyrrell Historical Library branch manager, said the repairs cost close to half a million dollars. The historical library’s vast collection was not harmed, but the interior structure was struck by mold, termites and swelling.
Tyrrell was the first public library in Beaumont. It was originally built as the First Baptist Church.
“This building was built 1903 — Alonzo Dawson was the architect,” Grace said. “He came down from Connecticut and built several churches and other governmental buildings. It's new Romanesque and Gothic.”
The church’s first building was built in 1887, but when the congregation grew too big for the building, it was torn down to make room for the current structure. When the Baptists outgrew the building for a second time, they abandoned it.
Captain W. C. Tyrrell purchased the building in 1923 and renovated it for the city and named it for his late wife, Helen.
The building’s architectural style is influenced heavily by Romanesque revival, with heavy stone walls and rounded arch openings. It also incorporates Victorian gothic, with elements including pointed arches, lancet windows, arched gables, rounded pilasters, soaring spires and a domed ceiling.
“The stained glass is original to the building,” Grace said. “It was from a glass company in Galveston, which is no longer in existence. All the designs of the windows are religious symbolism.”
Tyrrell died prior to its opening as the public library, Grace said.
“It opened in September of 1926 and remained the public library until 1974,” Grace said. “That's when they began to design the main library building to replace this.”
After the opening of the new public library, the Tyrrell Library was unused and in a state of decline from 1974 to 1983. The Tyrrell Historical Library Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of the historic building and its resources and collections, restored the building to its former state and it was opened to the public again in 1990. The association was formed in 1987.
The Tyrrell Library’s rules differ from those of the main library in order to protect the collections of books, art and archives.
“Basically, nothing circulates,” Grace said. “When you come in, there's no food or drink. You request things from the archives using finding aids, primarily. As far as the books go, you will go through the library's card catalog system.”
The stacks are open and visitors enjoy simply browsing the stacks, Grace said.
“When you come in, we ask that we pull the book and take it to a table, because we don't want you to damage the book,” he said.
Grace said the archives require special handling.
“Particularly special medium type items like negatives, color transparencies, photographs — we need to use gloves, cotton linen gloves, because we don't want dirt or oil from your hands being transferred onto the items,” he said. “Same way with when you're writing your notes and things. We ask that you use pencil, because if you use ink, you can't get it off.”
The Tyrrell Historical Library is located at 695 Pearl Street in downtown Beaumont, and is open from 9 a.m.to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
For more information, call 409-833-2759.
