Originally published in 1932, A History of the Public Library Movement in Great Britain and Ireland is concerned with the rise and progress of the public library as it stood at that time. The establishment and growth of the public library may be viewed as part of the great social movement for the spread of knowledge among the poorer classes which took place in the late eighteenth century and the early years of the nineteenth century. This movement was characterized by the establishment of various educational agencies, which are covered in this book, along with the introduction of the Public Libraries Act passed in 1850 and other legislation that followed.

Among the many important political and social reforms of the mid 19th century concerning working conditions, public health and education was the Public Libraries Act of 1850. However, while this allowed municipal boroughs in England and Wales to establish public libraries, few were built until Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887 precipitated the setting up of several dozen. During the 1880s and 90s private philanthropy saw the construction of a vast number of small and medium sized libraries, and by 1914, 62 per cent of the England's population lived within a library authority area. This selection guide looks at the external architecture of the libraries built under these and later initiatives, and how they were fitted out and used as access to their book-stock was opened up to readers.

This important and comprehensive book represents a ground-breakingsocio-architectural study of pre-1939 public library buildings. It includes a study of what is happening to historic libraries now and proposes that knowledge of their origins and early development can help build an understanding of how best to handle their future.