Captain Thomas Espy Post, Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall

In this room, men who fought on some of the nation's most hallowed grounds once traded stories. This was home to the Captain Thomas Espy Post, a chapter of the Grand Army of the Republic. Its members were veterans of the Union Army. And when the post's last surving member died in 1937, the room was sealed and remained closed for half a century. Books, bullets, archives, drums, chairs, pictures and documents gathered dust until the room's rediscovery in the 1980s. A recent restoration included installation of a museum-quality climate control system, which ensures the items will remain protected. The room is one of the richest and most intact of the half-dozen remaining GAR posts in the nation.