We have obtained spectra for 1273 stars using the 0.9 m coudé feed telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. This telescope feeds the coudé spectrograph of the 2.1 m telescope. The spectra have been obtained with the no. 5 camera of the coudé spectrograph and a Loral 3K × 1K CCD. Two gratings have been used to provide spectral coverage from 3460 to 9464 Å, at a resolution of ~1 Å FWHM and at an original dispersion of 0.44 Å pixel-1. For 885 stars we have complete spectra over the entire 3460 to 9464 Å wavelength region (neglecting small gaps of less than 50 Å), and partial spectral coverage for the remaining stars. The 1273 stars have been selected to provide broad coverage of the atmospheric parameters Teff, log g, and [Fe/H], as well as spectral type. The goal of the project is to provide a comprehensive library of stellar spectra for use in the automated classification of stellar and galaxy spectra and in galaxy population synthesis. In this paper we discuss the characteristics of the spectral library, viz., details of the observations, data reduction procedures, and selection of stars. We also present a few illustrations of the quality and information available in the spectra. The first version of the complete spectral library is now publicly available from the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) via ftp and http.