10 Notable Library Buildings in the North-West

10Notable Library Buildings in the North-West

By Margaret Brecknell

Interior of Chetham’s Library, Manchester Photo Credit: Kelly Whittlesey / Shutterstock.com

Many of the North-West’s public libraries have played a vital role in their local communities for well over a century now and indeed, one has been in existence for over 350 years.

In offering free access to books, these institutions have particularly, over the years, given less affluent members of society the chance of an education which may have otherwise been lost to them. The buildings, in which the region’s libraries are housed, have come in all shapes and sizes, but sadly, because of cuts, not all have survived to the present day. Here are ten of the most notable library buildings in the North-West. CHETHAM’S LIBRARY, MANCHESTER

Chetham’s Library has been in continuous use as a public library for over 350 years and thus can rightly claim to be the oldest free public reference library in the Englishspeaking world. It was established way back in 1653, under the terms of the will of Humphrey Chetham, a prosperous local textile merchant and philanthropist. Towards the end of his life Chetham devoted himself to charitable schemes with the aim of providing local underprivileged boys with an education, believing that this gave them the best chance of escaping poverty by finding a decent job. Free access to books was an important factor in enabling this to happen and so upon his death he made provision for a library to be founded, instructing the librarian “to require nothing of any man that cometh into the library”. 

Manchester Central Library Photo Credit: jean.cuomo / Shutterstock.com

The library is housed in one of Manchester’s oldest buildings, a medieval College House which was originally designed to accommodate priests. The beautiful old sandstone building dates to 1421 and probably would not have survived if it had not been selected to house Chetham’s Library, as by 1653 it was already falling into a state of disrepair.

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels famously met at Chetham’s when Marx visited Manchester in the summer of 1845. The research they undertook at the library led ultimately to their Communist Manifesto, which was first published in 1848. The desk at which the two men worked may still be viewed by visitors today.

Ancient cat flaps can also still be seen at the bottom of two of the original medieval doors in the cloisters. The library is situated so close to two of Manchester’s rivers, the Irk and the Irwell, that its resident cats have always had an important role to play in keeping the mice and rat population down to a minimum, thus ensuring that its valuable books were not damaged by rodents.

MANCHESTER CENTRAL LIBRARY

Manchester’s Central Library was officially opened by King George V on 17th July 1934. Designed by architect Vincent Harris, the building’s unusual circular design, reminiscent of the Emperor Hadrian’s Pantheon in Rome, immediately captured the imagination of the Manchester public and led to nicknames such as the “Corporation Wedding Cake” and “St Peter’s Square Gasometer”.

Manchester had been one of the very first places in the country to open a library established under the provisions of the Public Libraries Act of 1850, which first gave local boroughs the power to set up free public lending libraries. The official opening ceremony for Manchester’s first Free Library at Campfield took place in September 1852 and was attended by, amongst others, Charles Dickens. Subsequently, it became necessary to move to larger premises, but plans to construct a new building were put on hold at the outbreak of World War I in 1914 and for years the library was housed at a temporary site in what is now Piccadilly Gardens until the new Central Library was planned and completed. Since opening in 1934, the Central Library has become one of the city’s most familiar and best-loved landmarks.

In 2011 work was commenced on an ambitious £50m modernisation programme including plans to refurbish the Great Hall, the library’s iconic first-floor domed reading room. The library was closed for three years, during which time its books were famously stored down a salt mine in Cheshire. The new improved library has been hailed as a triumph, blending successfully the old and the new.

THE HARRIS, PRESTON

Currently closed for refurbishment, Preston’s iconic museum and library building owes its existence to a wealthy 19th-century lawyer called Edmund Harris. In 1877 Harris left the then considerable sum of £300,000 in his will to create a charitable trust that would fund the creation of several new public institutions in Preston including a free public library and museum. 

The foundation stone for the new building in the Market Place was laid during the Preston Guild of 1882. It took eleven years to be completed, but it was well worth the wait. The Harris is now widely acknowledged as one of the most remarkable Victorian public buildings in the whole of England.

The neo-classical style of its exterior is reminiscent of the world-famous British Museum in London and reflects the aim of the architect, Preston-based James Hibbert, to celebrate “the prodigious superiority of the Greeks over every other nation, in all works of real taste and genius”. Its interior is equally impressive and again highlights Hibbert’s love of classical architecture.

The current refurbishment plan, which is expected to take three years to complete, aims to restore the Grade-1 listed building to its former glory and reveal some of the original architectural details which have been hidden.

LIVERPOOL CENTRAL LIBRARY

The library, on William Brown Street in the heart of the city’s cultural quarter, originally opened in 1860. The Picton Reading Room, designed by Cornelius Sherlock with a distinctive semi-circular frontage and Corinthian columns, was added during the 1870s and was the first public building in the city to use electric lighting instead of gas. The Hornby Library, next to the Picton Reading Room, was added in 1906 and the Oak Room in 1914.

Unfortunately, the library suffered extensive damage in bombing raids during World War II, and most of the building, except for the façade, was destroyed, leading to two significant rebuilding projects in the immediate postwar years. In 2008 a multi-million plan was announced to demolish these two later extensions, as well as much of the existing interior, and create a new five-storey library building behind the Grade II* listed historic façade. At the same time the Picton Reading Room, Hornby Library and Oak Room were lovingly restored to their former glory.

Picton Reading Room at Liverpool Central Library Photo Credit: David Wilmot/CC BY 2.0

Everton Library Photo Credit: John Bradley/CC BY-SA 3.0

Now mixing the old with the new, the success of the library’s transformation has been widely praised since the building reopened in May 2013. North-West author, Jeanette Winterson, memorably described it as an “alchemical library”, where “past, present and future are transformed into a beautiful and energetic space that celebrates the life of the mind and the community spirit of books”. 

Once known as “the jewel on the hill”, Everton Library was first opened in 1896 and as one of Liverpool’s earliest public libraries played a vital role in the development of the city. The building is known for its striking brick and stone design, an eclectic mix of Jacobean and Arts & Crafts styles, including an ornamental turret at its southern corner. Its architect was Thomas Shelmerdine, who held the position of City Surveyor in Liverpool during the late Victorian era.

The library played an important part in the local community for over a century, but sadly it closed its doors for the last time in 1999. Despite being given Grade II listed status by Historic England as far as back as July 1966, the building has suffered two decades of neglect since its closure and has fallen into such a serious state of disrepair that it was recently named on the Victorian Society’s list of the top ten most endangered buildings in England and Wales.

Several projects to restore this once fine building have been proposed over the years, but none have come to fruition. However, in its 125th-anniversary year, a new scheme has been recently announced, which would see the building reopen as a multi-purpose hub once more at the heart of its local community.

BLACKPOOL CENTRAL LIBRARY

Blackpool’s imposing Central Library on Queen Street, not far from the North Pier, celebrated its 110th anniversary this year.

When the town’s pre-existing free library outgrew its original premises, the decision was taken, in 1908, to build a new library and art gallery on a plot of land which had been previously used as a bowling green. The art gallery was financed to the tune of £2,000 by artists Cuthbert and John Grundy, after whom it is named. The then considerable sum of £15,000 was donated by the Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie to fund the building of the library.

Blackpool’s Central Library was one of hundreds across the globe, to which Carnegie donated money. He believed that by giving people free access to books, public libraries provided people with an opportunity to acquire the knowledge to improve themselves which otherwise would not have been available to them. Carnegie’s library grants are now considered to be one of the most generous acts of philanthropy, by value, in world history.

Blackpool Central Library Photo Credit: Michael Beckwith/CC BY 2.0

Scottish-based architectural practice, Cullen, Lochhead and Brown were chosen to design the new building and work began in 1909. Sadly, the project’s lead architect, Alexander Cullen, died shortly before the building was completed. The Fleetwood Express noted that on his last visit Cullen had remarked that “he had never put into any building as much soul as he had into the designing of the Blackpool Library”.

This fine Edwardian Baroque red-brick building has remained relatively unchanged, although a year-long renovation project was undertaken to coincide with the library’s centenary in 2011. 

Clitheroe Library Photo Credit: Michael J P / Shutterstock.com

CLITHEROE LIBRARY

Also funded by Andrew Carnegie, Clitheroe’s new Free Library was opened in October 1905. Previously the town’s library had been situated in the adjacent building, which served as the Town Hall before the local council moved to new purpose-built offices in the late 1970s.

Located at the fork of two roads (Church Street and York Street), the influential historian, Nikolaus Pevsner, described the new library’s distinctive architectural style as “Loire”, because of its similarity to the French chateaux of the Loire Valley. It was the work of Lancashire-based architects, Briggs and Wolstenholme.

When a significant refurbishment programme was undertaken in the late 20th century, the library was extended into the adjacent building, meaning that it once more occupied the former Town Hall premises.

LANCASTER CENTRAL LIBRARY

Lancaster’s first public library was established in 1893 and for many years was housed in the Storey Institute before it became necessary to move to larger premises. The Storey is still in use today, housing Lancaster’s Visitor Information Centre as well as being home to a thriving arts centre and a popular café.

In May 1932 Lancaster’s grand new Central Public Library was opened in the north-western corner of the city’s historic market square. Built in the neo-Georgian style, it was designed to harmonise with its neighbour, the Old Town Hall (now Lancaster City Museum), which had been constructed some 150 years earlier.

In an article published five years after its opening the Lancaster Guardian described the new library as one of Lancaster’s “most cherished assets”, whose “popularity since the opening has more than justified its need”. It remains popular today, offering regular cultural events and craft activities as well as a full range of library services. 

Above: St Anne’s Library Photo Credit: St Anne’s Library Image Collection

DARWEN LIBRARY

When Darwen Library celebrated its centenary in 2008, a local brewery created a new beer in honour of the occasion, which gives an indication of the affection in which the library is held within the local community.

Darwen Library was another whose building costs were funded by businessman Andrew Carnegie and it is notable for the fact that the great philanthropist officiated himself at the opening ceremony in May 1908. To mark this auspicious occasion, the Stars and Stripes flew over the entrance and Carnegie was made a freeman of the Borough. In his speech Carnegie indicated why he took so much interest in libraries, explaining that “My father was a handloom weaver. Seven handloom weavers met in a workshop and resolved they would combine their own little libraries and open these books to their fellows. My father was one of those seven”.

Designed by architect Raymond Harrison, Historic England awarded the building Grade II listed status in 2017, citing the library as a “striking and well-designed civic building, executed to a high standard and demonstrating high standards of craftsmanship”.

ST ANNE’S LIBRARY

The foundation stone of St Anne’s beautiful Grade 2 listed Library on Clifton Drive South was laid in August 1904. A plaque inside the library’s entrance bears the following inscription which tells its history,

“The land on which this building is erected was presented to the Council by the St Anne’s-On-The-Sea Land and Building Co Ltd and the cost of the building (£3,500) was defrayed by Mr Andrew Carnegie”.

Designed by local resident, John Dent Harker, the library was opened in January 1906 and was later extended in 1932. It was memorably described by Nikolaus Pevsner as “every inch the early 20th century Carnegie library”. 