The UConn School of Law grew out of the Hartford College of Law, founded in 1921 by George William Lillard and Caroline Eiermann Lillard. The school has had eight locations over the decades. In 1984, it moved into the campus vacated by the Hartford Theological Seminary (now the Hartford International University for Religion and Peace).

The Law Library is a new addition to the campus. It was completed in 1996 and designed to match the five existing seminary buildings built in the Collegiate Gothic style in the 1920s (they are on the National Register of Historic Places). It is one of the largest law libraries in the country, a whopping 120,000 square feet!

Hartman-Cox Architects designed the $24 million library. It is named for Thomas J. Meskill, Jr. (1928-2007), a graduate of the law school who went on to serve as mayor of New Britain, Governor of CT, and as a circuit judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

The main hall. Circulation and reference are to the right. Tables and soft seating are on the other side of these short shelves.

Looking down into the main hall. Reading spaces with natural light are plentiful throughout the library.

Another view looking down into the main hall. The library entrance is on the first floor to the right, and circulation is across to the left.

Study carrels and tables. Note the chair’s angled base. These chairs are comfortable and allow some backward reclining for scholars who need to sit back and ponder a point of the law without breaking chair legs.

Long sight lines with natural light make the library feel open, even in a relatively narrow walkway.

Stacks! A beautiful and calming sight.

These modern lancet windows were a fun surprise.

Some wonderful person placed positive messages throughout the library. This one says, “You’re here for a reason.”

Notice the slant of the tabletop. Even that slight angle can help with neck and neck strain when reading heavy law books for hours.

Back outside. Because the current administration wants to erase women and their accomplishments from professional life, I want to focus on this banner. It features Shirley Raissi Bysiewcz, the first woman tenured faculty member at School of Law. Bysiewicz served at the School from 1956 to 1989 as a faculty member and later as the UCONN law library director.

The library’s exhibit, We March On, about women’s suffrage, has a page highlighting some of the firsts by women at the school.

These include:

• J. Agnes Burns graduated with the first class (1924) and was the first woman to argue in front of the CT Supreme Court
• Constance Belton Green, the first African American woman to graduate (1972)
• Bessye Warren Bennett graduated in 1973 and became the first African American woman licensed to practice law in CT (1974)
• Paula Bonds, the first African American woman faculty member (1983)

I’ll close with this positive message: It gets better. But not without a fight, as the women mentioned in this blog post both knew and did.

Thomas J. Meskill Law Library
University of Connecticut School of Law
39 Elizabeth St.
Hartford CT 06105
Website: https://library.law.uconn.edu

I visited the UCONN law library on October 19, 2023, for a work session, so I did not have much time to photograph this beautiful space and impressive architecture. Thinking these photos were not “enough,” I delayed writing this blog post. I was wrong!

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Check out a list of all the library posts on this blog.