The London Library: Tradition with a Twist

The London Library is a unique institution in several aspects. From its history, to its architecture, and even its collection., the library stands as a very important institution to the history and future of London. The London Library is tucked away in a corner of St. James Park. It is located in a region full of townhouses, and was actually a townhouse at its founding in 1841. This library was founded mainly because several intellectuals were annoyed at the British Library. As stated in a previous blog, the British Library is a non-lending library. Thus, you must go to the library to use the books but cannot take them home. These intellectuals believed that one should be able to go a library and borrow any book. Thus, these intellectuals, who most importantly include Thomas Carlyle, founded the library which has continued to grow to its present size and is now the largest lending library in the world.


What is especially interesting about the London Library is the fact that it requires a membership to join. Anyone can join but it will run you about 445 pounds annually. You can also get a lifetime membership, costing between 1000 pounds and 18,900 pounds, depending upon your age. The library requires a membership because it is completely independently funded. Membership fees makes up about 80% of the budget, and the other 20% comes from fundraisers and donations from patrons. Being entirely independent from an organization or a government allows the London Library to follow its own course. During it's history, the museum has grown to the size of 1 million items, 97% of then that are able to be browsed and borrowed. These books are in 50 different languages and in several different subject areas: Arts and Humanities, History, Literature, Biography, Art, Topography, Science and Miscellaneous, and Religion. They date from the 16th century to modern day, and only about 30,000 are rare and cannot be borrowed.

The architecture of the London Library is also quite unique. The library has a policy of not weeding the collection and thus need to constantly expand their stacks. Each part of the library has a different flavor, for it was built during a different time period in the library's 150+ year history. The main area feels as if you're walking into an old Victorian townhouse. In other parts of the library, there more early 20th century aspects. Part of the library was actually built in New York and then shipped over to London. There are grated metal floors, through which you can see several flights up or down. Not all of the shelves are the same, but they are unique to when the building was constructed and one can tell the history of the building through its architecture. The library just finished an expansion that will be able to house the yearly income of 8,000 books for the next 25 years.

Overall, the London Library is a truly unique institution. From its foundation as a library in response to the British Library, to the way it collects and preserves its collection, to how it grew architecturally over time, the London Library is very important to the history of London and the world. Its members consist of famous authors before their names were written down in the history books. Charles Dickens, George Eliot, Henry James, Charles Darwin, and Agatha Christie are just a few of the many who have benefited from the library and in turn, given to the library to make sure it continues to be a haven for budding writers and artists of the 21st century.

http://www.londonlibrary.co.uk/