The former convent of Santa Teresa dei Maschi (St. Theresa of the Males) is situated at the corner of the streets Strada Lamberti and Strada Santa Teresa dei Maschi, behind the namesake church. Construction began in 1671 to house the Discalced Carmelites who had arrived in Bari in 1630. The friars, however, had been forced to roam from church to church before settling down. They had first met in the church of San Giovanni Battista (St. John the Baptist), then, in that of San Rocco (St. Roch), then, San Gregorio (St. Gregory), and, finally, settled in the street called Strada Lamberti, named after the Lamberti family, who lodged the friars in the Church of St. Gregory, also called San Gregorio de Falconibus, owned by the family. A church dedicated to Saint Theresa of Avila was built adjacent to the convent around 1696. This, however, was not the only church dedicated to the saint. Indeed, another church known to the people of Bari as the Church of Santa Teresa delle Donne (St. Theresa of the Females) was located in Piazza San Pietro (St. Peter's Square) and run by the Discalced Carmelites. The name "of the Males" derived from the need to distinguish the new church from the pre-existing one, and this name was thus extended to denote the convent complex. To this day, the Carmelite Order emblem, composed of three stars and a cross, and bearing the Latin inscription "Domine susceptor meus es tu - et refugium meum” (O Lord, thou art my protector and my refuge) hangs above the main entrance.
The entire convent complex of Santa Teresa dei Maschi underwent a series of renovations between 1997 and 2001. Its internal layout was completely redesigned and, since 2003, has housed the Bari De Gemmis Provincial Library.
(http://www.cittametropolitana.ba.it/home_page/struttura_e_organizzazione/00001091_BIBLIOTECA_SANTA_TERESA_DEI_MASCHI___DE_GEMMIS.html)