Ribbon cutting held at Joplin Carnegie Library

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held on Friday, February 13, at The Joplin Carnegie Library in Downtown Joplin at 830 S. Wall Avenue.

The purpose of the ribbon cutting was to celebrate one year of new ownership and the progress that has been made towards rehabilitating Joplin’s original public
library building.

The current owner, Laurie Anderson, acquired the property in February 2025 with the intention of rehabilitating the historic structure, which had remained vacant for nearly two decades and had suffered from break-ins, vandalism, and multiple instances of arson.

The ribbon cutting celebration, hosted by the Joplin Chamber of Commerce and sponsored by Southwest Missouri Bank, was attended by over 40 people, with several Joplin-area organizations in attendance including Choose Joplin, Joplin Public Schools, Joplin Office of the Mayor and City Council, Joplin’s Historic Preservation Commission, Historic Murphysburg Preservation, Show Me The Ozarks Magazine, Franklin Technology Center, and Joplin Arts District.

Anderson thanked the Joplin community for their tremendous support over the past year and answered questions from the crowd regarding her plans to open the former library as an event venue.