Smith-Welch Memorial Library (Batley Building)
West 4th Street
The north end of downtown Hearne developed after the arrival of the second railroad (the International & Great Northern) in 1871. The building now known as the Smith-Welch Memorial Library was erected in 1892 on the site of an earlier wooden store. It remains one of the most ornate buildings in the downtown area reflecting the prosperity of Hearne in the late nineteenth century. The upper portion of the front facade has classical details in pressed metal on a wood frame. Above the main floor is a mezzanine with an open well which allowed light to enter through a skylight and second floor windows. The second level has an impressive gallery with original carved fretwork and semi-circular leaded/stained glass window facing the street. The building was donated to the city 1971 by Mrs. Josie T. Welch) when it was converted for use as a public library. This outstanding pressed metal fascaded Victorian Building has undergone extensive restoration. Builder J. H. Batley was a prosperous Hearne merchant. He sold the building in 1895 to Sam Lipsitz who operated a dry goods store here, a use which continued under several ownerships until late 1930. The Smith-Welch Memorial Library is one of 12 buildings or groups of buildings in Robertson County that is preserved in the U.S. Library of Congress American Memory Collection. Seven architectural drawings and floor plans of this historic building from this collection are featured below.

Footnote: Info taken from the Robertson County (TX) website.