The Hackley Library is a historic library in Muskegon, Michigan. It was given to the Muskegon Public Schools by Charles Hackley, a wealthy businessman, and opened in 1890. The library is listed on the Michigan Register of Historic Places. It is located at 316 West Webster Avenue and includes the historic Torrent House across the street, where family history records are kept.

The library is supported by the Friends of the Hackley Public Library.

The Hackley Administration Building is nearby at 349 Webster Avenue and is also named after Charles Hackley. It is owned by Muskegon Public Schools and was built in 1889. People are working to preserve the building.

Torrent House

The Torrent House is a large mansion with 31 rooms. It was built between 1891 and 1892 for $250,000 for John Torrent, who was a lumberman, city official, legal official, and mayor of Muskegon for three terms. John Torrent owned mills in Muskegon, Manistee, Ludington, Whitehall, Traverse City, and Sault Ste. Marie. The house has served as a mortuary, hospital, and Red Cross headquarters. In 1972, the city of Muskegon bought the house to protect it from being destroyed. It is located at 315 West Webster Avenue, and a Michigan Historical Marker is on the property.

The house was built using gray granite on top of a limestone base. Inside, the floors and walls were made from several types of wood, including mahogany, cherry, bird’s eye maple, redwood, sycamore, red birch, oak, pine, and rosewood.

Renovations

In 2014, a $1.2 million project was completed to repair and improve the inside of the building. In 2016, a major renovation of the library was done, which included adding ramps for easier access, fixing the air conditioning system, and making improvements to save energy. Most of the library's money comes from a mill tax.

Architectural features

The library has Louis Millet stained glass windows. The library used to get electricity from Hackley's sawmill. When it wasn't working, gas was used to light the library.