John Frederic Leary (1798 – 1 August 1861) was a British librarian and antiquarian who was the first librarian at the

House of Lords Library The House of Lords Library is the library and information resource of the House of Lords, the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It provides Members of the House and their staff with books, Parliamentary material and reference ...

. Leary was born in London. In 1826, he was working as a clerk when he was appointed the first librarian at the new library established at the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

. He remained in place until his death in 1861. Leary was at work on 16 October 1834 during the 1834 Parliament fire. He and the Lords clerks "afforded very prompt aid" to prevent damage to the library, which emerged unscathed, unlike the majority of the building, including the House of Commons Library. He was elected a Fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soci ...

(FSA) in 1842. He died on the job at the House of Lords in

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

, unmarried. He left all his belongings to his sister, Elizabeth Leary, also an employee of the House of Lords.''England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leary, John Frederic 1798 births 1861 deaths Civil servants from London Librarians from London Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London