George C. Thomas Memorial Library—Fairbanks, Alaska
Pen & Ink on Bristol Board, Image size 8"x 12.5"

The first library in Fairbanks was a small nook in St. Matthew's Episcopal Church. Appeals in Episcopal national publications for more materials for the reading room caught the attention of a Philadelphia banker named George C. Thomas. Mr. Thomas provided $4,000 to build a library, which was constructed in 1909. It served as the library for the City of Fairbanks and then the Fairbanks North Star Borough until 1977, when the Noel Wien Library was built. The Thomas Memorial Library building is on the National Register of Historic Places.