Carnegie's wife requested that the building be named after a Tufts graduate, Reverend Charles Eaton, who had presided over her wedding.

[1] Construction started in January 1964, and the library was originally named after Tufts' eighth president Nils Yngve Wessell.

[2] From August 1994 to October 1996, the library was enlarged in a $21 million renovation, designed by Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott.

The Clark Library collection is focused "on contemporary art and studio practice, our collections encompass exhibition catalogs, monographs, theoretical and art historical texts, technical manuals, periodicals, media, artists' books, zines, and more".

[10] With the late-2022 opening of the Green Line Extension of the MBTA Green Line E branch light rail transit route, there is a one-seat direct connection between the SMFA and the main campus of Tufts University in Medford.