{"id":247,"date":"2025-09-03T20:11:24","date_gmt":"2025-09-03T20:11:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/?p=247"},"modified":"2026-04-06T13:54:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T13:54:46","slug":"rosenberg-library-honoring-the-past-flourishing-in-the-present","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/rosenberg-library-honoring-the-past-flourishing-in-the-present\/","title":{"rendered":"Rosenberg Library: Honoring the Past, Flourishing in the Present"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Library name:<\/strong> Rosenberg Library History Center & Museum<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Location:<\/strong> 2310 Sealy Street, Galveston<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hours:<\/strong> Main Library<\/strong> hours Monday, Friday, and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Tuesday \u2013 Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.; closed Sunday. Galveston & Texas History Center<\/strong><\/a> (appointments encouraged) Tuesday \u2013 Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., closed Sunday and Monday. Rosenberg Library Museum, <\/strong>fourth floor galleries Monday \u2013 Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Second floor galleries open during main library hours. (All times Central.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more:<\/strong> Watch our video<\/a> for an in-depth look at the Rosenberg Library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What makes this library special:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bridging the past and present, the Rosenberg Library History Center & Museum serves many parts of its vibrant community. The Galveston & Texas History Center, located on the fourth floor of the library, holds manuscripts, books, maps, photographs, and more, dating back to the 1800s. Also a thriving public library with numerous community events for children, teens, and adults, the Rosenberg is deeply rooted in the life of the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Rosenberg is the oldest continuously operating library in Texas and the only public library on Galveston Island. The building was dedicated on June 22, 1904, on the birthday of its patron, Henry Rosenberg, a business leader and philanthropist who left $600,000 upon his death in 1893 to create the library (the equivalent of about $21 million today.) In 1971, the library expanded to double its floor space, allowing for a children\u2019s library, history center, museum space, and, later, a computer lab.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A beautiful glass chandelier hangs alongside the spiral staircase at the Rosenberg. It’s seen here from bookshelves on the second floor.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preserving history:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharon Batiste Gillins is a genealogist and historian who grew up in Galveston.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGalveston is an island. The island vibe is a lot different than any other vibe,\u201d Gillins said. \u201cIt\u2019s relaxed, but it\u2019s one that cherishes its history. This is a good place to be exposed to history. We are building on that every day so that we can continue to tell an evolving history of the island.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 For her, the Rosenberg\u2019s history center is a treasure trove of primary source documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe center is full of primary source documents on the history of Galveston and this entire area,\u201d she said. \u201cIf I am researching families\u2026 there are numerous resources here such as county histories that I can refer to. The historic newspaper records are important, the electronic databases are important, family history databases are important. I use the Sanborn Insurance Maps to find out the history of homes.\u201d On a personal note, she began going to the Rosenberg as a child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Rosenberg Library has always been part of my life,\u201d Gillins said. “Some of the most important resources at the Rosenberg are its librarians. You can\u2019t have a better friend at a library than a librarian.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gerrianne Schaad is the Special Collections Manager at the Rosenberg. \u201cOne of the things that makes us unique is that we span the history of Texas from the Republic to the current day,\u201d Schaad said. \u201cPeople forget about Galveston as a space that holds so much history. We have immigration, the port, finance, and commerce. The Strand (the downtown historic district) is very well known for Mardi Gras but that was the Wall Street of the South for years… Galveston has been here since the beginning. Being the site of the oldest library is just one more first and one more greatness that we can be proud of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What to look for as a first-time visitor:<\/strong> The statue of the library\u2019s founder<\/strong>, Henry Rosenberg, in front of the library\u2019s east entrance, is popular with visitors who often take their photos with it. The Great Storm of 1900 Exhibit<\/strong> on the fourth floor includes an interactive touch screen, oral histories from three different survivors, and a memorial wall. The museum exhibit areas<\/strong> on the second and fourth floors host a variety of rotating exhibits (learn more about their current exhibits<\/a>). The beautiful first-floor children\u2019s library area<\/strong> is a fun and interactive space. Make sure to check out Rose, the blue-tongued skink named after Henry Rosenberg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The statue of Henry Rosenberg, at the library’s east entrance, is a popular photo spot with visitors.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heart of the community:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Rosenberg runs the Galveston Reads program each year, a \u201cOne Community, One Book\u201d island-wide reading program where residents can get a free copy of the selected book, join in a broad range of events and discussions, and participate in an author visit. The 2025 selection was The Collected Regrets of Clover<\/em> by Mikki Brammer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other popular events include the summer reading program and Rosenberg Day (an annual book sale and open house in March with activities for patrons of all ages).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stephanie Davis, Community Engagement and Communications Coordinator for the Rosenberg Library, feels that the library ably balances its two primary roles as a historical archive and an active public library because of the cooperation of its staff members. \u201cWe have these separate entities, and we have the team members dedicated to those areas. What makes the Rosenberg special is that we all work together harmoniously, and we understand that each of the areas has a very unique value.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And one last thing:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019d like to invite anyone who hasn\u2019t visited the Rosenberg Library please stop by and see us, and if you\u2019ve been here before, come back,\u201d Davis said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to see it to understand. It\u2019s not just a library, it\u2019s a landmark. It\u2019s a historical beauty. And when you walk through the doors, you really feel that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photos courtesy of The Rosenberg Library.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This stained-glass window at the Rosenberg Library was a gift from the Lykes family, founders of the Lykes Brothers Steamship Company. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Article written by Michele Chan Santos, Coordinator, Texas Center for the Book<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Library name: Rosenberg Library History Center & Museum Location: 2310 Sealy Street, Galveston Hours: Main Library hours Monday, Friday, and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Tuesday \u2013 Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.; closed Sunday. Galveston & Texas History … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,10,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-libraries","category-literature","category-lonestarlibraries"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=247"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":363,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247\/revisions\/363"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/tcfb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}