The shelves are the first modular book-stacking system ever created. While examples of the system abound in the United States and around the world - the system can be seen at the New York Public Library, Library of Congress and the Vatican Library - no such examples exist in Miami. The shelving units, which serve a utilitarian function as well as an artistic one, were designed by Bernard R. Green and built from iron by Snead and Company Iron Works. Green's bookshelf design has had a profound impact on the library as we know it today. 

The much-anticipated arrival of the donation has been the result of major efforts on the part of several individuals. Viggo Rambusch, honorary chairman of Rambusch Decorating Company, supervised the removal of the at-least four-ton system - which Rambusch likened to "a giant erector set" - into thousands of separate pieces. The large unit will be delivered to The Wolfsonian in six to nine months and the several thousand pieces will then be re-erected. Rambusch described the process as "difficult, but it was an exercise. Particularly, we had to record the elements of the unit, produce drawings, and tag everything so it can be re-erected. It's a challenging and exciting project."

The shelves were installed in 1896 in the ASPCA building, which was designed by Renwick, Aspinwall & Owen. Their design was avant-garde, as they provided fireproofing protection and ventilation for the books.

50 Madison Avenue is now being transformed by Samson Management into 11 stories of condominiums. Samson Management is dedicated to preserving important elements of the building - marrying parts of the old into the new to create a blended whole. Accordingly, the company has been exceptionally sensitive to the historical details within the structure. Samson Management, owned by the Goldstein family, donated the late nineteenth-century cast-iron and steel shelving units - which will be placed in the The Wolfsonian's soon-to-be-opened Dynamo Café. The Café will display an Edison Bipolar Dynamo - a direct current generator built by Thomas Edison in 1887, donated to the museum by Board member Finlay Matheson. The bookshelves provide an opportunity to exhibit large objects from the collection on the first floor of the museum.

David M. Kershner, president of Samson Management, speaks for the Goldstein family when he says, "The Wolfsonian is a fascinating museum, and we feel that there could be no better home for the historical Snead shelving system."

The donation of the shelves - an important piece of material culture - is appropriate for The Wolfsonian. The museum uses objects to illustrate the pervasive power of art and design, to explore what it means to be modern, and to tell the story of social, historical, and technological changes that have transformed our world.

The museum is located at 1001 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, Florida. For general museum information, please call 305.531.1001.  

The Wolfsonian receives ongoing support from the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Arts Council; Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs through the Cultural Affairs Council, the Mayor and the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners; the Mayor and City Commission of the City of Miami Beach and the Miami Beach Cultural Arts Council; Dacra and the Miami Design District; Continental Airlines, the preferred airline of The Wolfsonian; the Chase Manhattan Foundation; the Arthur F. and Alice E. Adams Foundation; American Express; Luminaire; Carnival Foundation; Urban Investment Advisors/Starwood Urban Group; Flamingo/AIMCO; and the Indian Creek Hotel.

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