[17] Over time, the influx of more books and an increasing population necessitated the construction of a new building at 5 Washington Street, the current location of the main branch of the Newark Public Library.

An architectural marvel, the new building, designed by Rankin and Kellogg, was influenced by the 15th century Palazzo Strozzi in Florence, Italy.

[18] John Cotton Dana also founded the Newark Museum in 1909, inside the library, directing it until his death.

[21] The Newark Public Library claims to have negotiated its first international interlibrary loan in 1955 with the German government.

This was also taking place during the general time frame of the 1967 Newark riots, or rebellion as many would call it.

When the library was threatened with closure for the second time in 1969, a social movement of concerned citizens were able to put enough political pressure on the government in order to secure more funding.

[28] The four–story Italian Renaissance-inspired Main Library building was designed by John Hall Rankin and Thomas M. Kellogg, drawing inspiration from the 15th century Palazzo Strozzi in Florence, Italy.

Their intentions were to have the building not only serve as a library, but also as a museum, lecture hall, and gallery, that would provide cultural, as well as educational experiences in an aesthetically pleasing environment.

The building structure includes an open center court/foyer with arches and mosaics that extended upward to a stained glass ceiling four stories high.

As of August 2024:[45] After being selected by the Association of American College & Universities (AAC&U) to partake in the implementation of a Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) campus centers, Rutgers University-Newark partnered with the Newark Public Library to aid in the development of the program.

[46] The goal is to bring to light the issues regarding racial inequality in diverse cities like Newark.

Though selected in August 2017, the programs began on January 17, 2017, at the Newark Public Library and include events that addressed DACA and the Charlottesville Riots and used spoken word poetry and art as mediums.