Look toward the center of the University of New Mexico campus in Albuquerque, where Zimmerman Library rises as one of John Gaw Meem's most notable buildings. One of the largest and most notable buildings by New Mexico architect John Gaw Meem, it sits as the centerpiece of the UNM Libraries, the largest library system in New Mexico with almost four million print volumes. The core you see was built in 1936–38 with funding from the Public Works Administration and Works Progress Administration; later additions came in 1966 and 1973.
The building was named for former university president James Fulton Zimmerman in 1961, and in 2016 it was listed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties and the National Register of Historic Places. Look up at the nine-story Pueblo Revival tower—reinforced concrete, brick, and structural clay tile form the shell—and imagine the original 1938 section with its great hall, five reading rooms, and the central nine-story stack tower designed to hold 225,000 volumes. Inside, the trim and furnishings were handmade by local artisans employed by the WPA: hand-carved corbels, vigas, and heating register covers.
Notice the hand-carved corbels and vigas made by WPA artisans, still holding up this nine-story tower.