A small group visited the Mitchell Library, in Glasgow’s Charing Cross area, the largest public reference library in Europe. This beautiful and iconic building can be seen as you drive through Glasgow and at night is a spectacular sight. The Mitchell Library houses the Glasgow City Archives, Special Collections (including the works of Robert Burns – Scotland’s best known poet), Leisure and Lifestyle and General Services.
Our guide Clare was excellent- her enthusiasm was catching. She showed us round the various parts of the library, including some behind the scenes areas that are off limits to the general public. Clare told us about the history of the building which had been established from a bequest form Stephen Mitchell, a Tobacco baron in the late 19th century which included a beautiful Ladies’ Room where suitable reading material was thoughtfully provided (by male librarians – of course!). A new section was built in the 1911 and we were able to view an very interesting (enlarged) b/w photo of the ceremony showing Andrew Carnegie laying the foundation stone. Exclusively a Reference Library until 2005, the library now lends many of its books and new titles area added to the catalogue regularly.
The original North street building with its substantial external copper dome – a very ornate part of the building, is sadly in need of repair with the majority not open to the public. One of our group remembered studying in the main Reading Hall as a student and another singing as a young child in the St Andrew’s Hall which burnt down in 1962. The facade survived the fire and was incorporated into the 1980 extension.
We hope to return to look at some of the specialist collections at a future date. The Mitchell Library building also hosts a community library, a cafe, and free wi-fi and computers for public use. Events and Exhibitions are often held there. The current Exhibition is on the life and work of Robert Fergusson – a much overlooked Scottish poet who is said to have inspired none other than Robert Burns – see article from The Glasgow Herald below. The text is difficult to read but we hope you find the images interesting and you may like to put his name into an internet search engine.
