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Santiago Severín Library
The Public Library No. 1 Santiago Severín is a public library located in front of Simón Bolívar square No. 1653 Valparaiso, Chile. It depends of the Dirección de Bibliotecas, Archivos y Museos (DIBAM) through the National System of Public Libraries (SNBP). It was created in 1873 and together with the Library of the National Institute (1857-1929), was one of the two properly public libraries of the country until 1920. Now, it owns about 82 thousand volumes of books, and approximately 260 thousand copies of newspapers and magazines. In 1998 the building that was home of the library was declared a National Monument.

Santiago Severín Espina
Born on 19 November 1868, Valparaiso. Santiago was baptized in the Iglesia de Los Doce Apóstoles (Church of the Twelve Apostles) in Valparaiso. He studied at the Seminario de Valparaiso and at the Colegio Inglés Mackay, whose headquarters were in the Cerro Alegre of Valparaiso. After finishing his studies, despite the clear attraction he felt for journalism, Santiago decided to work with his older brothers and his father in the nitrates mines, the Severin and Compañia’s company. Once dissolved the company, Santiago and his sister Ana María worked in banking, nitrates, agricultural and commercial businesses, due to his abilities and skills, Santiago manages to amass an important fortune. Santiago gets involved into politics being elected congressman as candidate of the Partido Nacional, by Valparaiso and Casablanca between 1912 - 1915. Santiago was a consultant of the Banco Nacional (National Bank) and the Compañía Salitrera Antofagasta (Nitrates Company of Antofagasta), President until his death of the Sociedad Protectora de la Infancia (Children's Protection Society), and ventured into agriculture in his farm "El Oliveto".

At 51 years, he died on 17 March 1920, according to the death certificate presented by the Civil Registry Office, Precinct El Almendral, Valparaíso. Its remains were buried at the Espina & Ramos' family grave, at Valpaíso's Cemetery n°1. By a testament granted on March 10 of 1920, before the Notary public of Valparaiso Arturo Bascuñan Cruz, left among other legacies, to the city of Valparaiso, the building that was destined to be public library that today bears his name, and that is located in Victoria Square between the streets Molina, Edwards and Brasil avenue in Valparaíso.

Origins
Knowing that Chile's Biblioteca Pública n°1 was the most important in the country followed by the Biblioteca Nacional, founded according to Supreme Decree n° 47 on 27 February 1873, issued by the president Mr. Federico Errázuriz Zañartu and his Minister of Public Instruction Mr. Abdón Cifuente. Chile's Biblioteca Pública n°1 had serious operational issues, considering that after holding its first activities until 1911 in the Court of law's old building, it had been moved to an inconvenient and narrow office in the corner of Edwards and Independencia Street, which didn't provided a good environment to operate either. He was seriously interested in the problem that the library had. It was a few blocks away from a patch of public land, in which were the 2nd Police Station operated until 1912. He received the rights from Valparaiso Municipality, and provided funds for the building's construction.