The Catholic National Library (formerly the Catholic Central Library) is a large
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
library
A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...
previously located at
St Michael's Abbey in
Farnborough, Hampshire, founded in 1912. In 2015 it was relocated to
Durham University Library
The Durham University Library is the centrally administered library of Durham University in England. It was founded in January 1833 at Palace Green by a 160 volume donation by the then Bishop of Durham, William Van Mildert, and now holds over ...
. It is known for its 70,000 books and periodicals, and the broad range of subjects it covers. It was a
registered charity under English law.
The collection started in 1912 in the porch of
St Mary Magdalene's Church in Bexhill-on-Sea, from the private library of an American, Mr William Reed-Lewis. It moved to Victoria, London in 1922 and was then established as the Catholic Central Library in 1936. In July 1959 the
Friars of the Atonement took over its staffing and financing. In 1997 this building was sold off and the library's collection was threatened with being broken up. A campaign by some notable British Catholic writers and noblemen helped to keep the collection intact. From 1997 the running was transferred to a board of Trustees. Premises were leased in Lancing Street, London. In 2007 the collection was rehoused at
St Michael's Abbey, Farnborough, changed its name from Catholic Central Library to Catholic National Library, and was once again open to visitors. Access to the library in Farnborough closed on 27 June 2014.
References
External links
Catholic National Library
{{Authority control
Benedictine monasteries in England
Libraries in Hampshire
Catholic Church in England and Wales
1912 establishments in England
Charities based in Hampshire
Farnborough, Hampshire