History
Although the original architect, Bertram Goodhue, originally intended Sterling to be taller and resemble the State Capitol Building in Lincoln, Nebraska, plans changed under the new architect James Gamble Rogers.
Rogers created the library in the image of a Gothic Cathedral, even going so far as to model the circulation desk after an altar. He even required that the library be seen from the street. As a result, Berkeley College was divided into two sections in order to create an unobstructed view of the cathedral-like library. It was designed as a memorial to John William Sterling (Yale 1864), name partner in the New York law firm Shearman & Sterling, who donated around US$29 million to Yale upon his death. Sterling Memorial Library, which Rogers remarked was "as near to modern Gothic as we dared to make it," is made up of fifteen stack levels and eight floors of reading rooms, offices, and work areas. Work on the library was completed in 1931.
The amount of stone transported for the construction exceeded the amount used, and as a result, myths and legends abound on the Yale campus regarding fanciful structures claimed to exist on the roof, built of surplussed stone and metal. One story has a small castle hiding the air-conditioning system. Another claims that there exists an entire miniature city up there, complete with its own stone golf course. In reality much of the fanciful design that exists on the roof was present in the original design.
Read more about this topic: Sterling Memorial Library
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