New York City is a place filled with radiant life, all types of cultures, and a home to artists and creatives of all kinds. But not only does New York have the most incredible theater and music, but it also has one of the best libraries in the world. The New York City Public Library has 10 million books, with 15.2 million research items including photographs, microforms, microfiches, maps, prints, programs, and music sheets. The library is the second largest in the world, and there are four different research libraries. But what makes this library so special is the fact that all four different libraries are open to the public, something that most libraries don’t allow. The library was founded by the Astor, Lenox, and Tilden foundations, and it’s construction, designed by Carrere and Hastings which started in 1899 and finished in 1911 with great marvel. The opening of the library was a grand ceremony, with a visit from President William Howard Taft and 30,000-50,000 onlookers to take a peek inside the enormous building. The architecture alone is fascinating enough, but the library also has some rare drafts of poems and novels by legendary authors. The library holds an edited draft of one of Mary Shelley’s poems, author of the historically famous book Frankenstein. The library also has one of the most extravagant map collections, with the first map dating back to 1825. The collection even includes some maps used by civil war generals, with hand-drawn sketches and coloring. The New York City Public Library is a place of never-ending discovery and knowledge and should be used and visited by book lovers, writers, researchers and anyone who loves making new discoveries.