diff --git a/configure.ac b/configure.ac
index 624e633ee8e..0ee32daac7b 100644
--- a/configure.ac
+++ b/configure.ac
@@ -785,7 +785,7 @@ if test "x$RASTER" = "xraster"; then dnl # {
     dnl ================================================
     POSTGIS_SRCDIR=`$PWDREGRESS`
     LIBLWGEOM_CFLAGS="-I${POSTGIS_SRCDIR}/liblwgeom"
-    LIBLWGEOM_LDFLAGS="${POSTGIS_SRCDIR}/liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a"
+    LIBLWGEOM_LDFLAGS="${POSTGIS_SRCDIR}/liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a"
     LIBPGCOMMON_CFLAGS="-I${POSTGIS_SRCDIR}/libpgcommon"
     LIBPGCOMMON_LDFLAGS="${POSTGIS_SRCDIR}/libpgcommon/libpgcommon.a"
 
diff --git a/doc/html/image_src/Makefile.in b/doc/html/image_src/Makefile.in
index f806152cdc4..3d4ecc270e4 100644
--- a/doc/html/image_src/Makefile.in
+++ b/doc/html/image_src/Makefile.in
@@ -149,12 +149,12 @@ $(IMAGES_RESIZED): ../images/%.png: %.wkt generator styles.conf
 	convert $@ -resize 100x100 $@
 
 # Build the main executable
-generator: ../../../liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a $(OBJS)
-	$(CC) -o $@ $(OBJS) ../../../liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a -lm $(CUNIT_LDFLAGS)
+generator: ../../../liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a $(OBJS)
+	$(CC) -o $@ $(OBJS) ../../../liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a -lm $(CUNIT_LDFLAGS)
 
 # Build liblwgeom
-../../../liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a:
-	make -C ../../../liblwgeom liblwgeom.a
+../../../liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a:
+	make -C ../../../liblwgeom liblwgeom.la
 
 # Clean target
 clean:
diff --git a/liblwgeom/Makefile.in b/liblwgeom/Makefile.in
index 7be9edfaf82..cc20bbc8e6c 100644
--- a/liblwgeom/Makefile.in
+++ b/liblwgeom/Makefile.in
@@ -21,8 +21,8 @@ prefix = @prefix@
 exec_prefix = @exec_prefix@
 libdir = @libdir@
 INSTALL = $(SHELL) ../install-sh
+LIBTOOL = @LIBTOOL@
 
-SONAME = liblwgeom.so.@POSTGIS_MAJOR_VERSION@
 SOVER = @POSTGIS_MAJOR_VERSION@.@POSTGIS_MINOR_VERSION@.@POSTGIS_MICRO_VERSION@
 
 
@@ -84,7 +84,9 @@ SA_OBJS = \
 NM_OBJS = \
 	lwspheroid.o 
 
-OBJS = $(SA_OBJS) $(NM_OBJS)
+LT_SA_OBJS = $(SA_OBJS:.o=.lo)
+LT_NM_OBJS = $(NM_OBJS:.o=.lo)
+LT_OBJS = $(LT_SA_OBJS) $(LT_NM_OBJS)
 
 SA_HEADERS = \
 	liblwgeom.h \
@@ -92,25 +94,23 @@ SA_HEADERS = \
 	libtgeom.h \
 	lwgeom_geos.h
 
-all: liblwgeom.a
+all: liblwgeom.la
 
 # nothing to install or uninstall
 install uninstall:
 
-install-liblwgeom: liblwgeom.so liblwgeom.a
-	$(INSTALL) liblwgeom.so $(DESTDIR)$(libdir)/liblwgeom.so.$(SOVER)
-	$(INSTALL) liblwgeom.a $(DESTDIR)$(libdir)/liblwgeom.a
-	@echo "Remember to run ldconfig"
+install-liblwgeom: liblwgeom.la
+	$(LIBTOOL) --mode=install $(INSTALL) liblwgeom.la $(libdir)/liblwgeom.la
+	$(LIBTOOL) --mode=finish $(libdir)
 
 uninstall-liblwgeom: 
-	rm -f $(DESTDIR)$(libdir)/liblwgeom.so.$(SOVER)
-	rm -f $(DESTDIR)$(libdir)/liblwgeom.a
+	$(LIBTOOL) --mode=uninstall rm -f $(libdir)/liblwgeom.la
 
-liblwgeom.a: $(SA_OBJS) $(NM_OBJS) $(SA_HEADERS)
-	ar rs liblwgeom.a $(SA_OBJS) $(NM_OBJS) 
+#liblwgeom.a: $(SA_OBJS) $(NM_OBJS) $(SA_HEADERS)
+#ar rs liblwgeom.a $(SA_OBJS) $(NM_OBJS) 
 
-liblwgeom.so: $(OBJS) $(SA_HEADERS)
-	$(CC) -shared -Wl,-soname,$(SONAME) -o $@ $(OBJS) $(LDFLAGS)
+liblwgeom.la: $(LT_OBJS) $(SA_HEADERS)
+	$(LIBTOOL) --tag=CC --mode=link $(CC) -rpath $(libdir) $(LT_OBJS) -release $(SOVER) $(LDFLAGS) -o $@
 
 maintainer-clean: clean
 	rm -f lwin_wkt_lex.c
@@ -119,28 +119,26 @@ maintainer-clean: clean
 
 clean: 
 	$(MAKE) -C cunit clean
-	rm -f $(OBJS) 
-	rm -f liblwgeom.a 
-	rm -f liblwgeom.so 
+	rm -f $(LT_OBJS) 
+	rm -f liblwgeom.la
+	rm -rf .libs
 
 # Nothing specific in distclean (will be done by clean)
 distclean:
 
-check: liblwgeom.a
+check: liblwgeom.la
 	make -C cunit check
 
-# Command to build each of the .o files
-$(SA_OBJS): %.o: %.c 
-	$(CC) $(CFLAGS) -c -o $@ $<
+# Command to build each of the .lo files
+$(LT_SA_OBJS): %.lo: %.c
+	$(LIBTOOL) --mode=compile $(CC) $(CFLAGS) -c -o $@ $<
 
-# Command to build each of the .o files
-$(NM_OBJS): %.o: %.c 
-	$(CC) $(CFLAGS) $(NUMERICFLAGS) -c -o $@ $<
+$(LT_NM_OBJS): %.lo: %.c
+	$(LIBTOOL) --mode=compile $(CC) $(CFLAGS) $(NUMERICFLAGS) -c -o $@ $<
 
 # Generate WKT parser from Flex/Yacc inputs
 lwin_wkt_parse.c: lwin_wkt_parse.y
 	$(YACC) -o'$@' -d $^
-  
 #       $(YACC) --debug --verbose -o'$@' -d $<
 #       $(YACC) -o'$@' -d $^
 
diff --git a/liblwgeom/cunit/Makefile.in b/liblwgeom/cunit/Makefile.in
index 31083fff471..578cec606fa 100644
--- a/liblwgeom/cunit/Makefile.in
+++ b/liblwgeom/cunit/Makefile.in
@@ -56,8 +56,8 @@ check: cu_tester
 endif
 
 # Build the main unit test executable
-cu_tester: ../liblwgeom.a $(OBJS)
-	$(CC) -o $@ $(OBJS) ../liblwgeom.a -lm $(CUNIT_LDFLAGS) $(LDFLAGS)
+cu_tester: ../.libs/liblwgeom.a $(OBJS)
+	$(CC) -o $@ $(OBJS) ../.libs/liblwgeom.a -lm $(CUNIT_LDFLAGS) $(LDFLAGS)
 
 # Command to build each of the .o files
 $(OBJS): %.o: %.c
diff --git a/loader/Makefile.in b/loader/Makefile.in
index c00a55b25e3..04aec753649 100644
--- a/loader/Makefile.in
+++ b/loader/Makefile.in
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ ICONV_LDFLAGS=@ICONV_LDFLAGS@
 ICONV_CFLAGS=@ICONV_CFLAGS@
 
 # liblwgeom
-LIBLWGEOM=../liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a
+LIBLWGEOM=../liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a
 
 # GTK includes and libraries
 GTK_CFLAGS = @GTK_CFLAGS@ @IGE_MAC_CFLAGS@
diff --git a/loader/cunit/Makefile.in b/loader/cunit/Makefile.in
index 6ca57be42cb..f116fdaff87 100644
--- a/loader/cunit/Makefile.in
+++ b/loader/cunit/Makefile.in
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ PGSQL_FE_CPPFLAGS=@PGSQL_FE_CPPFLAGS@
 PGSQL_FE_LDFLAGS=@PGSQL_FE_LDFLAGS@
 
 # liblwgeom
-LIBLWGEOM=../../liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a
+LIBLWGEOM=../../liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a
 
 # iconv flags
 ICONV_LDFLAGS=@ICONV_LDFLAGS@
diff --git a/postgis/Makefile.in b/postgis/Makefile.in
index 6e3934e07e6..81c5994d983 100644
--- a/postgis/Makefile.in
+++ b/postgis/Makefile.in
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ OBJS=$(PG_OBJS)
 # older version of PostGIS, rather than with the static liblwgeom.a 
 # supplied with newer versions of PostGIS
 PG_CPPFLAGS += @CPPFLAGS@ -I../liblwgeom -I../libpgcommon
-SHLIB_LINK = ../libpgcommon/libpgcommon.a ../liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a @SHLIB_LINK@ 
+SHLIB_LINK = ../libpgcommon/libpgcommon.a ../liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a @SHLIB_LINK@ 
 
 # Extra files to remove during 'make clean'
 EXTRA_CLEAN=$(SQL_OBJS)
@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ endif
 
 # Make all PostGIS objects depend upon liblwgeom, so that if an underlying
 # change is made, a PostGIS rebuild is triggered.
-$(PG_OBJS): ../liblwgeom/liblwgeom.a ../libpgcommon/libpgcommon.a
+$(PG_OBJS): ../liblwgeom/.libs/liblwgeom.a ../libpgcommon/libpgcommon.a
 
 # Borrow the $libdir substitution from PGXS but customise by adding the version number
 %.sql: %.sql.in