Rostov-on-Don Public Library, the first major library in the city, was opened on 7 January 1886. The new library consisted of 3,000 books, purchased by the city administration from a private library for the sum of 5,000 rubles. Until 1894, the library was housed in various private houses on
Bolshaya Sadovaya Street. From 1921 to 1994 the library was located in
Velikanova House on . In 1974, the construction of a new library building on
Pushkinskaya Street began. It was designed by architect and engineer Boris Sidelkovsky. The construction was severely delayed over the next 20 years and was finished only in 1994. On 25 May 1994 the library moved into its new premises. Three months later, in September, the library invited Russian writer
Alexander Solzhenitsyn to visit and meet readers. In May 2010, Don State Public Library hosted a conference of
Russian Wikipedians. ==See also==