The Greek Temple
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Inspired by Gallison's visit to the Parthenon and designed by Gallison and Skinner, the 66 by 98 sq. ft. structure was described by the Boston Globe as "purely classic as if it had been built in Athens during the age of Pericles". The copper tiled roof, textured glass windows and impressively heavy bronze doors help to build anticipation of the treasures inside.
The exterior walls - exterior is of pink granite from the Milford Granite Company of Milford, New Hampshire. In a 1901 article in the Milford Cabinet (NH) the company announced the project and states that "the stone is of a pinkish variety, and is quarried mostly at the Stevens ledge, from whence it is shipped to the sheds of the Milford Granite Company, where it is cut to dimensions and every piece is boxed and reshipped to Franklin".
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Memorial Hall 1904
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The building's grand entrance, named Memorial Hall for both the portrait of Joseph and Emily Ray, and a large dedication plaque that greets all visitors at the front door, successfully manifests the "wow" factor the architect and artists were trying to create. An impressive mixture of scagliola and genuine marble, simulated and real cast bronze, with a brick floor set in herringbone pattern, thick textile wallpaper, bronze wall sconces
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June 19th
The Reading Gallery 1904
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Dominated by the 11 ft high, 240 ft long mural of a Grecian festival painted by renown Italian artist Tommaso Juglaris, no expense was spared for this reading & study room. Wood columns, benches and panels are made of Spanish mahogany. surrounded by decorative plaster moldings in red, green and gold and a marble fireplace topped by a bas relief. A high domed ceiling with more than a dozen windows at its base shine a light on this one of a kind masterpiece of art and architecture.
Delivery Room 1904
Books stacks were closed to the public for a time, so the librarians would go to the shelves, pull the books and bring them to the patrons who waited on one of the four mahogany benches for their books to be "delivered". This waiting area is surrounded by a series of H.H. Gallison paintings entitled "Deserts of the world"