The southeast corner of Robarts Library

Rear corner of Robarts Library

Looking up the side of the Library

Lightvector painting of Robarts Library, showing the ambient sky vector blue and the ambient vector of electric lights in yellow.

Robarts Library is the main humanities and social sciences library of the University of Toronto. Opened in 1973, it is currently the largest book repository in Canada. Robarts Library is the heart of the University of Toronto library system, which is the third largest library system in North America, after that of Harvard and Yale. The library is named after former Ontario Premier John Robarts. It occupies an entire block at the northwest corner of St. George Street and Harbord Street. With 14.8 million volumes and a massive collection of periodicals and journals, Robarts Library is the largest humanities and social science library in Canada. Image File history File links Robarts_front_750px. ... Image File history File links Robarts_front_750px. ... Download high resolution version (750x601, 113 KB)Credit: Photo created by Sascha Noyes Info: Taken in Toronto 2004 with a Canon A70 digital camera. ... Download high resolution version (750x601, 113 KB)Credit: Photo created by Sascha Noyes Info: Taken in Toronto 2004 with a Canon A70 digital camera. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (480x640, 150 KB) Summary John P. Robarts Library Building at the U of T Licensing File links The following pages link to this file: Robarts Library ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (480x640, 150 KB) Summary John P. Robarts Library Building at the U of T Licensing File links The following pages link to this file: Robarts Library ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 525 pixel Image in higher resolution (2000 × 1312 pixel, file size: 773 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Lightvector painting of Robarts Library, at University of Toronto. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 525 pixel Image in higher resolution (2000 × 1312 pixel, file size: 773 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Lightvector painting of Robarts Library, at University of Toronto. ... The humanities are those academic disciplines which study the human condition using methods that are largely analytic, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural and social sciences. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A modern-style library in Chambéry A library is a collection of information resources and services, organized for use, and maintained by a public body, institution, or private individual. ... The University of Toronto (U of T) is a coeducational public research university in Toronto, Ontario. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... Harvard University (incorporated as The President and Fellows of Harvard College) , is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Founded in 1636,[1] Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning still operating in the United States. ... Yale redirects here. ... Dalton McGuinty The Premier of Ontario is the first minister for the Canadian province of Ontario. ... For the recipient of the Victoria Cross see John Robarts (VC). ...

The library's main building is a large brutalist/futurist concrete structure designed to look like a giant peacock when viewed from the south (see top picture) with the small tower in front designed to be the peacock's neck and beak, while the library stacks in the background are meant to be its extended tail. Brutalism is an architectural style that spawned from the Modernist architectural movement and which flourished from the 1950s to the 1970s. ... Futurism was a 20th century art movement. ...

Its design was conceived in the 1960s by Toronto architects Mathers and Haldenby, in collaboration with the New York architecture firm Warner Burns Toan & Lunde, who specialized in precast concrete buildings. Construction of the 14-storey library was completed in 1973. Precast concrete is an ancient type of construction material made with concrete cast in a reusable mold or form and cured in a controlled environment, then transported to the construction site and lifted into place. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ...

The library was initially intended for use by graduate students only, but following massive student protests, undergraduate students were also granted access. The library's initial design was for the shelving system to revolve, to allow for faster collection by library staff, who would then send books downstairs for pickup. After Robarts was opened to all students, the rotating system was discarded, although the tracks used by the revolving shelving system are still visible. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... In some educational systems, undergraduate education is post-secondary education up to the level of a Bachelors degree. ...

Robarts Library is home to the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, which contains a priceless collection of manuscripts and first editions. Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library is part of the University of Torontos library system. ...

It is also the home of Cheng Yu Tung East Asian Library, which holds a collections of over 380,000 volumes of materials in Chinese, Japanese and Korean, and of the Old English Dictionary Project. Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon) is an early form of the English language that was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland between the mid-fifth century and the mid-twelfth century. ...

In addition to a rich collection of texts, "Robarts," as University of Toronto students commonly refer to it, contains several other useful services for University of Toronto students. 24-hour quiet reading rooms are open when the university is in session. As well, the Information Commons, a large bank of computers connected to the internet on the first floor, allow all University of Toronto students access to computers, printers, scanners, and audiovisual equipment. Additionally, the university's Accessibility Services and its test/exam site are also located in this library.

Geographical location

The library is located at 43.6638° N 79.3997° W. It is possible to identify it in aerial photos looking for a large equilateral triangle.

Nicknames

Robarts Library has many nicknames including Fort Barts, Fort Book, Jail, the Bunker, Robots, and the Turkey. All of these nicknames refer to the stoic, blockish appearance of the shape (especially the Turkey, as the building looks more like a turkey than a peacock at first glance). This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

In television

The library was featured in the episode, The One Where Joey Speaks French, of the popular television series Friends. Robarts Library is shown briefly during a scene transition and is implied to be the outdoor view of an unknown New York hospital where actress Jennifer Aniston's character Rachel visits her father, who has just suffered a heart attack. The One Where Joey Speaks French is the thirteenth episode of season ten of the television situation comedy Friends. ... Friends. ...

The library was also shown in an episode of Sliders, called "El Sid." It is shown briefly as a still visual after a commercial break, in an episode where the story takes place in an alternate San Francisco that has become a giant prison. This article is about the sci-fi television show. ...

It was also seen during a slide transition during the season finale of The Amazing Race 8: Family Edition. The Bransen Family were running past it after finishing a Roadblock (a game task) at the nearby Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto. The Amazing Race 8 (titled The Amazing Race: Family Edition) was the eighth installment of the popular reality television show, The Amazing Race. ... The Bata Shoe Museum The Bata Shoe Museum, in Toronto, Canada, is a place dedicated to the history of footwear. ...

Urban Legends

There is a legend amongst the student population of the University of Toronto that the original Robarts architect committed suicide as a result of not being able to handle the immense, tremendous amount of disdain that the building's awkward five-year-old's-attempt-at-making-a-Lego-ostritch design attracted.

There are also alleged cloning vats hidden in the labyrinthine upper levels of the library.

External links

• Robarts Library at the University of Toronto
• Satellite image of Robarts Library from Google Maps

Coordinates: 43°39′51.49″N, 79°23′58.33″W Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...

Toronto landmarks

Art Gallery of Ontario | Canada's Walk of Fame | Canadian Broadcasting Centre | Casa Loma | CHUM-City Building | CN Tower | Dundas Square | Exhibition Place | Fairmont Royal York | Fort York | Gibson House | Harbourfront Centre | Hockey Hall of Fame | Kensington Market | Montgomery's Inn | Nathan Phillips Square | Old City Hall | Ontario Place | Ontario Science Centre | Osgoode Hall | PATH Underground | Queen's Park | R.C. Harris Filtration Plant | Robarts Library | Royal Ontario Museum | St. James' Cathedral | St. Lawrence Hall | St. Lawrence Market | St. Michael's Cathedral | Todmorden Mills | Toronto City Hall | Toronto Eaton Centre | Toronto Islands | Toronto Pearson International Airport | Toronto Zoo | Union Station | Waterfront Trail | WindShare Wind Turbine Sports: Air Canada Centre | BMO Field | Maple Leaf Gardens | Ricoh Coliseum | Rogers Centre | Varsity Arena Originally, a landmark literally meant a geographic feature used by explorers and others to find their way back or through an area. ... Image File history File links Toronto_Flag. ... The main entrance to the AGO The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) is an art museum on the eastern edge of Torontos downtown Chinatown district, on Dundas Street West between McCaul Street and Beverley Street. ... Canadas Walk of Fame acknowledges the achievements and accomplishments of successful Canadians. ... The Canadian Broadcasting Centre View up to the skylight inside the Barbara Frum atrium. ... Casa Loma Casa Loma (literally House on the Hill) is a Toronto, Ontario, Canada tourist attraction and the former home of financier Sir Henry Mill Pellatt. ... The CHUM-City Building The CHUM-City Building is the headquarters of CHUM Limited, a Canadian media corporation. ... The CN Tower, at 553. ... Dundas Square. ... Looking East from the CNE Ferris Wheel (National Trade Centre at left, Automotive Building at right). ... The Royal York Hotel opened in 1929 as the tallest building in the British Commonwealth. ... A blockhouse at Fort York in 2004 Fort York is an historic site of military fortifications and related buildings on the west side of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Gibson House is a historic property in North York, Ontario. ... Harbourfront Centre The Harbourfront Centre is a key cultural facility on Toronto, Ontarios waterfront, situated at 235 Queens Quay West. ... The Hockey Hall of Fame is located at the corner of Front & Yonge in downtown Toronto The Stanley Cup on display at the Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame which is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, celebrates the history of hockey with exhibits featuring memorabilia and NHL... Kensington market in downtown Toronto Kensington Market is one of the most famous neighbourhoods in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Montgomerys Inn is a historic home in south Etobicoke in the city of Toronto, Ontario. ... Nathan Phillips Square, 2005 Nathan Phillips Square is a city square that forms the front (south) entrance to Toronto City Hall or New City Hall at Queen Street West and Bay Street (its address is 100 Queen West). ... Ontario Place is an agency of the Government of Ontario, an entertainment attraction, located approximately 4 km west of downtown Toronto on the shore of Lake Ontario, just south of Exhibition Place. ... Completed Teluscape. ... PATH is a 27-kilometre network of pedestrian tunnels beneath the office towers of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Aerial view of Queens Park in winter, facing north. ... Southern facade of R.C. Harris Filtration Plant. ... The Royal Ontario Museum, commonly known as the ROM (rhyming with Tom), is a major museum for world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... St. ... St. ... St. ... St. ... Todmorden Mills was a small settlement located in the Don River valley in Toronto, Ontario. ... Toronto City Hall The upper left hand corner of this picture is where Toronto City Hall would be built. ... The Toronto Eaton Centre is a large shopping mall and office complex in downtown Toronto, Ontario Canada, named after the now-defunct Eatons department store chain. ... Toronto Islands as seen from CN Tower. ... Torontos Lester B. Pearson International Airport, or Pearson Airport (IATA: YYZ, ICAO: CYYZ), straddling Mississaugas northeastern boundary with neighbouring Toronto, is Canadas busiest airport and part of the National Airports System. ... The Toronto Zoo is a zoo which is open 364 days a year, located in the north eastern part of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Union Station is a major railway, subway, and streetcar station at 65 Front Street West between Bay Street and York Street in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Launched in 1995 the Waterfront trail is a series of trails along the shores of Lake Ontario currently begining in Niagara on the Lake and extending to Brockville. ... Categories: Stub | Cooperatives ... North Entrance Atrium View from CN Tower The Air Canada Centre, often referred to simply as The ACC, is a multi-purpose arena located on Bay Street in downtown Toronto, Ontario. ... BMO Field is a soccer-specific stadium under-construction located in Exhibition Place in the city of Toronto. ... Maple Leaf Gardens, 2006 Exterior signage as of 2006, with letters missing Maple Leaf Gardens was an indoor arena in Toronto, on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street. ... Ricoh Coliseum is an arena at Exhibition Place in downtown Toronto, Ontario. ... Rogers Centre, formerly known as (and often still unofficially called) SkyDome, [1] is a multi-purpose stadium in Toronto, Ontario, situated next to the CN Tower near the shores of Lake Ontario. ... Varsity Arena is an arena in Toronto, Ontario. ... Performing arts: Bathurst Street Theatre | Canon Theatre | Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres | Four Seasons Centre | Hummingbird Centre | Massey Hall | Molson Amphitheatre | Princess of Wales Theatre | Royal Alexandra Theatre | Roy Thomson Hall Bathurst Street Theatre, 736 Bathurst Street, Toronto. ... The Canon Theatre is one of Torontos live entertainment venues. ... The entrance to the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres Interior of Winter Garden Theatre The Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres are a pair of stacked theatres in Toronto, Canada. ... Construction and fundraising for the Four Seasons Centre in May 2006. ... The Hummingbird Centre The Hummingbird Centre is a major performing arts venue in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Inside Massey Hall in 1945. ... Molson Amphitheatre (commonly called the Amphitheatre) is a semi-enclosed outdoor concert venue in Toronto, Ontario. ... The Princess of Wales Theatre is a 2000-seat theatre located at 300 King Street West in the heart of Torontos Entertainment District. ... The Royal Alexandra theatre The Royal Alexandra Theatre is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario Canada. ... Roy Thomson Hall Roy Thomson Hall is a concert hall in Toronto, Canada. ...