In 1868, the Public Library of Cincinnati, then located in the Ohio Mechanics' Institute, purchased an opera house in construction after its owner went bankrupt.

The main hall, which featured cast-iron alcoves, spiral staircases and a wide skylight ceiling, was praised by the media at the time.

This led to various complications, including the difficulty of quickly producing requested books and the deterioration, from repeated flooding, of the volumes that were stored in the sub-basement.

Other challenges included insufficient lighting, poor ventilation, lack of seating, and elevator and fire safety.

Decades after the library's demolition, images of its interiors garnered significant public interest online.

[1][2] The Public Library of Cincinnati, as it was then called, eventually outgrew the space, leading its board to purchase a nearby Vine Street building which was under construction.

[1] Librarian William Frederick Poole is credited as contributing key ideas to the design, notably the cast-iron reading room in the main hall as well as the implementation of central heating and an elevator.

At the entrance of the Old Main, busts of William Shakespeare, John Milton, and Benjamin Franklin welcomed visitors.

Harper's Weekly complimented its "graceful and carefully studied architecture, which provides that no portion of the shelving is deprived of a proper amount of light".

[3] The Cincinnati Enquirer wrote that one was "impressed not only with the magnitude and beauty of the interior, but with its adaptation to the purpose it [was] to serve".

On the third floor were four "art rooms" containing thousands of rare and valuable volumes from the United States and Western Europe.

In the fourth-floor attic was the Training Class, an in-house library school founded by librarian Laura Smith.

[4] Moreover, books that were stored in the sub-basement were damaged due to repeated flooding, and the smell of damp paper in the room was reportedly so strong that librarians were not allowed in for more than 20 minutes.

The library's lantern slide collection also grew so heavy that building inspectors requested it be lowered from the third floor to the first.

In the summer, the lack of air conditioning and small amount of windows created a hot and humid atmosphere.

Decades after the Old Main was demolished, it gained newfound public interest when black-and-white photos of its interiors became widely circulated online.