The first new branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in more than 30 years, the Southeast Anchor Library in Highlandtown brings the Baltimore City's library system into the 21st century. On the corner of Eastern Avenue and Conkling Street, the glass and brick of the 2 ½ -story structure, which open in May 2007, stands out in the still-scruffy-but-up-and-coming neighborhood. Designed to be a hub of the community as well as a research center, this branch has a café (not yet open), a spacious children's section with an enclosed story time area and meeting rooms.
Southeast's 80,000 volumes include:
- Fiction and non-fiction for adults, teens, and children
- Spanish-language collection
- Magazines and newspapers
- Audio books and DVDs.
Enter from either the front on Eastern Avenue or the back door near Fleet Street. The two entries are connected by an atrium flanked by the check-out desk, adult fiction and DVDs on the east side and the children's area to the west. Upstairs you'll find the Spanish collection, audio books, non-fiction and the teen area. See floor plan.
Much of the library's 27,000 square feet is devoted to non-collection areas such as offices, meeting rooms, a café (not open yet) and study rooms. Despite the modern architecture the library still features a few quaint neighborhood touches like painted screens of Baltimore icons like the Patterson Park Pagoda.
Outside, the grounds include a quiet fenced reading garden in the rear and a piazza at the busy corner of Conkling and Eastern.
Other features of the facilities include:
- Teen area, with three group study rooms
- More than 50 computers for public use
- Self-checkout counter
- Drive-up window
Southeast Anchor Library
3601 Eastern Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21224
410-396-1580
Hours
Mon., Wed., Thurs.: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.; Tues.: 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.; Fri.- Sat.: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.; Sundays: June-Sept closed, Oct. – May 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Parking
The library has no lot of its own, but there is a lot with meter parking to the southeast of the building, just off Fleet Street.
Public Transit
- Buses
- 10 Line - Stop at Eastern Avenue & Conkling Street
- 13 Line - Stop at Eastern Avenue & S. East Avenue (4 blocks east to library)
- 22 Line - Stop at Bank Street & Conkling Street (1 block south to library)
