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Derby Central Library: Difference between revisions

Coordinates: 52°55′20″N 1°28′46″W / 52.92225°N 1.4795°W / 52.92225; -1.4795
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'''Derby Central Library''' was established in 1879<ref name="Kelly's 1899">{{cite book|title=Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire 1899 p.130|year=1899|url=http://historicaldirectories.org| accessdate=April 2011}}</ref> with [[Derby Museum and Art Gallery]], in a building designed by [[Richard Knill Freeman]] and given to [[Derby, England|Derby]] by [[Michael Thomas Bass]]. It is Derby's main public and reference library, the largest branch of [[Derby City Libraries]] run by the [[unitary authority]] that governs the city.
'''Derby Central Library''' was established in 1879 with [[Derby Museum and Art Gallery]], in a red brick building designed in the Domestic Flemish Gothic style by [[Richard Knill Freeman]] and given to [[Derby, England|Derby]] by [[Michael Thomas Bass]]<ref name="Kelly's 1899">{{cite book|title=Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire 1899 p.130|year=1899|url=http://historicaldirectories.org| accessdate=April 2011}}</ref>. It is Derby's main public and reference library, the largest branch of [[Derby City Libraries]] run by the [[unitary authority]] that governs the city.


==History==
==History==

Revision as of 22:14, 9 April 2011

Derby Central Library
The 1879 Library building (shared with Derby Museum and Art Gallery)
Map
LocationThe Wardwick, Derby, DE1 1HS, England
TypePublic library
Established1879
Architect(s)Richard Knill Freeman Edit this on Wikidata
Branch ofDerby City Libraries
Branches15
Access and use
Population servedprimarily Derby and Derbyshire
Other information
DirectorPaul Rogers
WebsiteAbout Central Library

Derby Central Library was established in 1879 with Derby Museum and Art Gallery, in a red brick building designed in the Domestic Flemish Gothic style by Richard Knill Freeman and given to Derby by Michael Thomas Bass[1]. It is Derby's main public and reference library, the largest branch of Derby City Libraries run by the unitary authority that governs the city.

History

The "permanent" library in Derby was established in 1811 in Queen Street. This library was open to people who by the 1830s could afford to buy a four guinea share and pay an annual subscription of another guinea. In 1832 this library had 84 members.[2] The book collection incorporated the 4,000 volume library of the Derby Philosophical Society.[3] In 1863 the botanist Alexander Croall was appointed the first Librarian and Curator and the following year the museum and library were joined together. Croall left in 1875[3] to become the curator of the Smith Intitute in Stirling.[4]


On Saturday 28 June 1879 Mr. Bass performed the official opening of The Derby Free Library and Museum, the cause of great celebration in the town. The ceremony involved an official reception of Mr. Bass at the Midland Railway Station followed by an elegant luncheon at the Midland Hotel and a procession to the Market Place, along decorated streets packed with excited crowds of people. Mr Bass then presented the title deeds to the Mayor at the Town Hall. The party then moved on to the Free Library itself, where Mr. Bass took a tour before returning to the steps and declaring the building open[5].

In 1914 the curator's house alongside the library was demolished to make way for an extension to the building, intended to house the recently acquired Bemrose Library[6].

In 1964 the Museum and Art Gallery expanded into a newly-built wing on The Strand, but leaving the original 19th century building still partly shared between the Library and the Museum.

See also

References

  1. ^ Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire 1899 p.130. 1899. Retrieved April 2011. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  2. ^ Glover, Stephen (1829). The history and directory of the borough of Derby, a guide p.430.
  3. ^ a b Newsletter of the Geological Curators Club, Mick Stanley, Vol 1, No. 8, 1976. accessed February 2011.
  4. ^ "Old Town Cemetery Stirling". Retrieved February 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  5. ^ Derby Mercury: Wednesday July 2, 1879. p.2.
  6. ^ [citation needed]

52°55′20″N 1°28′46″W / 52.92225°N 1.4795°W / 52.92225; -1.4795