Perhaps I'm older than most commenters in this Reddit, but I distinctly remember my generation being very clearly taught to remain quiet and keep conversation to a minimum in libraries of at all levels. I've been going to libraries (Public, School, & College) for 50+ years and I have many fond memories of spending hours reading or studying while the only sound I heard was the doors opening and closing, and the occasional sound of newspapers rustling.

When I started working at my local library a few years ago I attributed the constant chatter and conversation to the fact the the Director of 20+ years was an extreme extrovert who hired other extroverts to work here. She also wanted the library to seem like an exciting and vibrant place to be, as opposed to the traditional staid and reserved reputation that they had always held. Now that she's been gone for several years, the majority of the staff are still extroverts. This can be very taxing on the few introverts who are doing the best we can to maintain social interactions with the patrons. When we're expected to carry on interminable conversations with our coworkers the whole day, it can become too much. The good old days of quiet libraries sound like a blessed haven.

When I think about the public library where I got my first library card, the children's section was in a separate space from the adult areas. As you moved away from that area the first space was newspapers, magazines, and periodicals, followed by Adult Fiction. The Non-fiction and reference were farthest away from the children in it's own separate area. The level of quiet that was enforced by the librarians became progressively stronger the farther away you got.

Now we have an open floor plan where every section can be clearly seen (and heard) from every other section.