Opened on April 6, 1970, the library was named after an alumnus and Georgetown Chime who was killed in the Vietnam War.

Designed by architect John Carl Warnecke, the building is supposed to be a brutalist interpretation of Flemish Romanesque Healy Hall, located adjacent to Lauinger on Georgetown's main quad.

[3] The Students of Georgetown, Inc. also known as "The Corp," operates a coffee shop named "The Midnight MUG" on the second floor of the building.

[3] The building once received the Award of Merit by the American Institute of Architects in 1976 for distinguished accomplishment in library architecture.

[5] However, in recent years, as public attitudes towards brutalism shifted, the library has been referred to as one of the "ugliest" building in Georgetown.