About Steen Library

From 1924 to 1926, the library was located in its first home on-campus in the Austin Building at Stephen F. Austin State University. Upon completion of the Rusk Building, the library moved to the third floor of the new building, where it resided for three decades. In the Spring of 1957, the Boynton Building was completed and the library moved to the first building totally dedicated for the library. The new library was named after the second President of the University, Dr. Paul W. Boynton. It doubled the existing space and provided the first open stack arrangements for general collections. By the 1960s, the library was once again running out of space to accommodate books and library users. In 1971, Library Director Alvin C. Cage began plans for the new library location in a central part of the campus at SFA. The construction of the new library began in 1972, and in April of 1976, the Board of Regents named the library in honor of Dr. Ralph W. Steen, retiring third President of the University. Dr. Ralph W. Steen had presided over SFA's transition from a small college to a regional university. In response to the honor of the library being named after him, Dr. Ralph W. Steen said, "A great university must have a great library."

A Proud Member of the Federal Depository Library Program

Pinelog "Best Place to Study" 2018 Award Winner