Washoe County Library

Reno, United States

Open to visitors

The interior is normally open, possibly ticketed.

Strollie cannot guarantee access — always check before you travel.

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Located at 301 S. Center Street in Reno, Nevada, the Downtown Reno Library serves as the main branch of the Washoe County Library System in a notable Modern-style building completed in 1965. Designed by architect Hewitt Campau Wells, the structure was recognized with the national Industrial Landscape Award in 1968 for its innovative integration of plants, shrubs, and trees into the interior design—an honor presented by Lady Bird Johnson and shared with landscape architect Mitchell Serven and Purdy and Fitzpatrick Nursery. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 despite being less than the typical fifty-year age requirement, the building retains a fallout shelter, one of the few remaining in Reno. In 2014, Cengage Learning awarded the library for its "coolest internal space."