The W. E. B. Du Bois Library is one of the two libraries of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in Amherst, Massachusetts, the other being the Science and Engineering Library. The W.E.B. Du Bois Library holds resources primarily in humanities and social and behavioral sciences. At 28 stories and 286 feet 4 and 1/8 inches (roughly 88 m) tall, making it the second-tallest library in the world, and the tallest academic research library in the world. It is also the 23rd tallest educational building in the world. The building is so large that it maintains a security force, which is managed by various supervisors and student employees.Present holdings at the UMass Libraries include over 5.9 million volumes and over nine million individual items, providing access to nearly 80,000 online journals, over 700,000 e-books, and more than 200 databases.As part of the Five College Consortium, the UMass Amherst Libraries also have access to material from its partners in the Consortium: Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College. Students can also take advantage of the Interlibrary Loan Services to obtain materials from libraries beyond the Five College system and from all over the world.HistoryAs the University of Massachusetts Amherst began to grow exponentially in the 1960s it was decided by the Board of Trustees that a large University Library would be needed for the Library System to make the transition into the future. The designer was Edward Durrell Stone who followed recommendations by a Boston library consultant who recommended that the University would require a building of nearly 310,000 square feet to meet with the growing demands of students. Ground was broken in April 1969 and the building was opened to the public in 1973, with an official dedication taking place in 1974.
