Pierson & Wilson Sites

The John Adams Building is one of three buildings of the Library of Congress. Congress passed a bill to fund an annex to the library in 1930, but construction did not take place until the mid-1930s, making it a New Deal project.  The building opened in January 1939.  It was known as 'the Annex' until the 1970s. The original appropriation for the building was $6.5 million, which proved insufficient and an additional $2.8 million was added by the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1935.  The total cost, including land and equipment, was $9.3 million. The Adams Building was meant to supplement the Library's Main...