[1] Built in 1951, it stands at the eastern end of Malesardi Quadrangle.

The library, which occupies five floors,[2] is named for Ellen Clarke Bertrand, who contributed $800,000 and a library endowment fund to the university.

[3] Commissioned in 1946, under Bucknell president and former governor of Maine Horace Hildreth,[4] the building's cornerstone was laid on February 24, 1951, just under a year after ground was broken on the project.

It was formally opened on September 26, 1951.

[3] On Christmas Eve 1960, a fire damaged the library's roof and clock tower; no books were lost, however, and water damage was minimal.