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|name = Manchester Central Library
|image = At Manchester 2018 073.jpg
|caption = Manchester Central Library viewed from [[St Peter's Square, Manchester|St Peter's Square]]
|mapframe = no
|map_type =
|coordinates = {{coord|53.4781|-2.2447|display=inline,title}}
|location_town = [[Manchester]]
|location_country =
|architect = [[E. Vincent Harris]]
|client = Manchester Corporation
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|style = Neoclassical [[Rotunda (architecture)|rotunda]], [[Tuscan order|Tuscan]] [[colonnade]] in Portland stone, low pitched leaded roof and a two-storey, five-bay [[Corinthian order|Corinthian]] [[portico]] entrance.
|size =
| nrhp =
{{Designation list
| embed = yes
| designation1 = Grade II* Listed Building
| designation1_offname = Central Public Library
| designation1_date = 2 October 1974
| designation1_number = {{NHLE|num=1270759|short=y|postscript=none}}
}}
}}
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===Background===
Manchester was the first local authority to provide a public lending and reference library after the passing of the [[Public Libraries Act 1850]]. The [[Manchester Free Library]] opened at Campfield in September 1852 at a ceremony attended by [[Charles Dickens]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/500138/central_library/4586/history_of_central_library |title= Before Central Library: Campfield |publisher= Manchester City Council|access-date=20 November 2014}}</ref>
When the Campfield premises were declared to be unsafe in 1877, the library was moved to the old Town Hall in [[King Street, Manchester|King Street]]. The library moved again to what is now [[Piccadilly Gardens]], to the former outpatients wing of [[Manchester Royal Infirmary#
In 1926 the city council held a competition to design
[[File:Manchester Central Library 2.jpg|thumb|Manchester Central Library at
In 1934 the Blind Collection from Deansgate and the Commercial Library from the [[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange]] were moved to the library. The Chinese Library Service was set up in 1968.
===Opening===
Central Library opened in 1934 to much fanfare. Singer-songwriter [[Ewan MacColl]] reminisced on the opening: "The new Central Library which replaced the chicken house was an imposing circular structure with an enormous reading room, a small theatre and carrels where serious students could carry on their research without interruption. The portico of the magnificent edifice quickly became a popular rendezvous and "Meet you at the Ref" became a familiar phrase on the lips of students, lovers and unemployed youths. I was there on the opening day and on many days thereafter; the Ref played an important part in my life for I made many friends there."<ref>{{Cite web|title=History of Central Library|url=http://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/500138/central_library/1212/history_of_central_library/6|work=manchester.gov.uk|publisher=Manchester City Council|at=Famous Names|access-date=10 November 2011
The library was declared open by King George V on 17 July 1934.<ref name="opening">{{Cite web |title=History of Central Library
An employee at the library who was present on opening day said: "When it was being built the public were very intrigued about its final appearance – they were used to rectangular buildings and the shape of the girders used seemed to make little sense. I remember families coming in first to "gawp"... Under the portico became a favourite trysting place. In all, the shape of the building was its best advertisement and it was never necessary to put a notice 'Public Library' on the outside."<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of Central Library
===Renovation===
Reports emerged in 2008 that the Central Library needed essential renovation to repair and modernise its facilities.<ref name="problems">{{Cite news |title=£150m to save Central Library |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1056149_150m_to_save_central_library |newspaper=Manchester Evening News |date=1 July 2008 |access-date=10 November 2011|last=Ottewell|first=David|publisher=M.E.N. Media}}</ref> The library faced [[asbestos]] problems and needed work to maintain its 'structural integrity'.<ref name="problems"/> The Central Library closed from 2010 to 2014 for refurbishment and expansion. During the closure its collections were stored in the [[Winsford Rock Salt Mine]]; some of the books in the stack joined collections at [[Greater Manchester County Record Office]].
The indoor plan is now very different. What was the theatre in the basement is now part of the library. A wall was knocked through, making an indoor connection between the library and [[Manchester Town Hall]]. The Library Theatre Company
==Architecture==
[[File:Centrallibraryreadingroom.jpg|thumb|The central Wolfson Reading Room in 2021
[[File:Manchester Central Library 2014 re-opening 7891.JPG|thumb|180px|The Shakespeare Hall entrance in 2014
[[File:Manchester Central Library England.jpg|thumb|left|The exterior of the library]]
[[File:Manchester Central Library Ceiling - panoramio.jpg|thumb|left|The
Designed by architect Vincent Harris, the striking rotunda form of the library was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. Like its 2nd-century model, the library is a round building fronted by a large two-storey [[portico]] which forms the main entrance on [[St Peter's Square, Manchester|St Peter's Square]], and is surrounded by five bays of
The pitched leaded roof appears from street level to be a dome, but this is only a surrounding roof. The dome that can be seen from within the Great Hall lies within this roof, and cannot be seen from the ground.<ref name="mcc_website">{{cite web |url=http://www.manchester.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=500138&documentID=1212&pageNumber=5 |title=History of Central Library |access-date=7 March 2008 |work=manchester.gov.uk |publisher=Manchester City Council |at=Features of the Building |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120307224927/http://www.manchester.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=500138&documentID=1212&pageNumber=5 |archive-date=7 March 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
On the first floor is the Great Hall, a large reading room topped by a dome. Much of the original furniture designed by the architect can be seen on this floor. Around the rim of the dome is an inscription from the [[Book of Proverbs]] in the [[Old Testament]]:<ref name="mcc_website"/>
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{{Cquote|<small>Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom, and with all thy getting get understanding. Exalt her and she shall promote thee; she shall bring thee to honour when thou dost embrace her, she shall give of thine head an ornament of grace, a crown of glory she shall deliver to thee.<br /> Proverbs 4:7</small> ||}}
In former years the dome's [[acoustics]] caused an [[
The Shakespeare Hall is an ornate chamber displaying local heraldry and with large [[stained glass]] windows. The central window was designed by [[Robert Anning Bell]] and depicts [[William Shakespeare]] and scenes from his plays. Two side windows designed by [[George Kruger Gray]] depict the [[coats of arms]] of the City of Manchester, the [[Victoria University of Manchester|University of Manchester]], and the [[Duchy of Lancaster|County and Duchy of Lancaster]]. The windows were a memorial bequest to the library by Rosa E. Grindon (1848–1923), the widow of Manchester botanist [[Leo Grindon]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://authorities.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?AuthRecID=7999274&v1=1&HC=1&SEQ=20100430095424&PID=c96ZLrRs1-FBO-Nv1Z87_HsNPf|title=Grindon, Rosa E. |publisher=Library of Congress|access-date=30 April 2010}}</ref><ref>She was the author of ''Shakespeare & his plays from a woman's point of view'', published in 1930.</ref>
The ceiling decorations include the arms and crests of the Duchy of Lancaster, the [[
On the left landing is a white [[marble]] statue, ''the Reading Girl'' by the Italian sculptor Giovanni Ciniselli. It was bought by the industrialist and promoter of the [[Manchester Ship Canal]], [[Daniel Adamson]]. The statue was presented to the library by his grandchildren, the Parkyn family, in 1938.<ref name="mcc_website"/>
==Collections==
[[File:Manchester Central Library 2014 re-opening Lending Library 7944c.JPG|thumb|right|The new Lending Library in 2014
It is the second largest public lending library in Britain, after the [[Library of Birmingham]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Manchester Central Library reopens after £50m revamp |last=Pidd |first=Helen |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/mar/21/manchester-central-library-reopens-50m-pound-revamp |newspaper=The Guardian |date=21 March 2014 |access-date=
Beneath the Great Hall were four floors of steel book stacks providing {{convert|35
The library collections include over 30 [[incunabula]] (books published before 1500) and many first and early editions of major works. The special collections include:<ref name="mcc_website"/>
* '''[https://web.archive.org/web/20140817023702/http://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/447/rare_books_and_collections/338/literature_and_letters/2 The Gaskell Collection]''' – works by [[Elizabeth Gaskell]], one of the most important writers to have lived and worked in the city
* '''The Theatre Collection''' – a record of the history of [[theatre]] in Manchester
*'''The Henry Watson Music library''' – one of the largest public library collections of [[sheet music]], named after the Mancunian musician and composer Dr [[Henry Watson (musician)|Henry Watson]] (
* '''The Newman Flower Collection of Handel Manuscripts''' – acquired from the estate of Sir [[Newman Flower]] by the Henry Watson Music library in 1965. This library of rare manuscripts had originally been collected by [[Charles Jennens]], a close friend of [[George Frederic Handel]], and was later held in the collection of the [[Heneage Finch, 3rd Earl of Aylesford|Earl of Aylesford]]. It contains works by Handel, as well as items of Italian music from the early 18th century, including concerto partbooks of ''[[The Four Seasons (Vivaldi)|the Four Seasons]]'' by [[Antonio Vivaldi]]. Notably, the collection also includes a number of previously unknown violin sonatas by Vivaldi, autographed by the composer, which are now known as ''The Manchester Sonatas''.<ref>Antonio Vivaldi, Manchester Violin Sonatas (1720, reprinted 1976) {{ISBN|0-89579-072-6}}</ref><ref name="watson-library" />
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== Memorials ==
[[File:Spanish Civil War Memorial Manchester Central Library.jpg|alt=Spanish Civil War Memorial Manchester Central Library it shows
There is a memorial to those from [[Greater Manchester]] who fought in the [[Spanish Civil War]] as part of the [[International Brigades]].
== Famous users ==
[[Anthony Burgess]], the author who wrote the novel ''[[A Clockwork Orange (novel)|A Clockwork Orange]]'', was a regular visitor to the library during his school days. In a volume of his autobiography, ''[[
==Statistics==
In 1968 it was recorded that the adult lending stock was 895,000, the adult reference stock 638,200, the junior stock 114,600, a total of nearly
[[File:St Peter's Square, Midlands Hotel, Central Library, Town Hall.jpg|thumb|center|600px|A panoramic view of St Peter's Square. From the far left to right: [[Midland Hotel, Manchester|Midland Hotel]], Manchester Central Library (before the current alterations), and [[Manchester Town Hall
==See also==
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==External links==
{{Commons category|Manchester Central Library}}
*{{Official|1=https://www.manchester.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents.php?categoryID=500138}}
* [https://www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterarchiveplus/sets/72157634643430861/ * [http://www.manchester.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents.php?categoryID=500138 Central Library homepage]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090804191802/http://www.manchester.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=500138&documentID=1212 History of Manchester Central Library]
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