O'Neal Library

The O'Neal Library (formerly the Emmet O'Neal Library) is a public library owned and operated by the City of Mountain Brook and located at 50 Oak Street in Crestline Village. It is part of the Jefferson County Library Cooperative.

The library was founded in 1965 in a building on the same site as the present library. The building was donated by the Elizabeth and Kirkman O'Neal Foundation and the library was named after Kirkman's father, former Governor Emmet O'Neal, partly in recognition of his promotion of rural libraries during his term.

The first Emmet O'Neal Library, a one-story brick clad structure with Georgian style trim and a hipped roof, was one of the first public buildings to be heated and cooled by an electric heat pump. It originally housed 8,000 volumes, but was soon enlarged with an east wing in 1966.

The present building, designed by HKW Associates, opened in 2001.

In 2020 the Mountain Brook City Council voted unanimously to shorten the name to "O'Neal Library", eliminating the association with Emmet O'Neal, an avowed white supremacist who helped draft the 1901 Alabama state constitution, while preserving its gratitude to later generations of the O'Neal family who have contributed greatly to the library.

References

• Markham, Madoline (August 31, 2015) "Library celebrates 50 years" Village Living
• Johnson, Roy S. (July 1, 2020) "Johnson: Time to change Mountain Brook’s library, named for white supremacist Alabama governor." The Birmingham News
• Johnson, Roy S. (July 14, 2020) "Mountain Brook city council OKs resolution to rename Emmet O’Neal Library." The Birmingham News

External links

• O'Neal Library website