The Literary and Philosophical Society of Newcastle upon Tyne (or the ''Lit & Phil'' as it is popularly known) is a historical library in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and the largest independent library outside

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. The library is still available for both

lending In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...

(to members) and as a free

reference 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 vi ...

. The society is a registered charity.

Founding

Founded in 1793 as a "conversation club" by the Reverend William Turner and others – more than fifty years before the

London Library The London Library is an independent lending library in London, established in 1841. It was founded on the initiative of Thomas Carlyle, who was dissatisfied with some of the policies at the British Museum Library. It is located at 14 St James' ...

– the annual subscription was originally one guinea. The Lit and Phil library contained works in French, Spanish, German and Latin; its contacts were international, and its members debated a wide range of issues, but religion and politics were prohibited. Women were first admitted to the library in 1804. In February 2011, actor and comedian

Alexander Armstrong Alexander Henry Fenwick Armstrong (born 2 March 1970) is an English actor, comedian, radio personality, television presenter and singer. He is the host of the BBC One game show '' Pointless'', as well as the morning show on Classic FM. He is ...

became President of the Lit & Phil. He launched their funding appeal at a special gala event. At the start of 2012, membership of the Library reached 2,000, the highest number since 1952.

History

Literary and Philosophical Society of Newcastle

During the 19th and 20th centuries, the Lit & Phil was host to a long list of the intelligentsia of the era. Engineer and inventor

George Stephenson George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was a British civil engineer and mechanical engineer. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victorians In the history of the United Kingdom and the ...

showed his miner's lamp there, and in 1879, when

Joseph Swan Sir Joseph Wilson Swan FRS (31 October 1828 – 27 May 1914) was an English physicist, chemist, and inventor. He is known as an independent early developer of a successful incandescent light bulb, and is the person responsible for develop ...

demonstrated his electric light bulbs, the Lit and Phil building became the first public building to be so illuminated. The Society received in 1800 the country's first specimens of the

wombat Wombats are short-legged, muscular quadrupedal marsupials that are native to Australia. They are about in length with small, stubby tails and weigh between . All three of the extant species are members of the family Vombatidae. They are ada ...

and the duck-billed platypus from John Hunter, Governor of New South Wales and honorary member of the Lit and Phil.Page 270 of Magazine of Natural History, edited by John Claudius Loudon, Edward Charlesworth, John Denson, published 1829 by Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green.
Google's version
Between 1822 and 1825, a new building was created for the Society on Westgate Road, designed by

John Green John Michael Green (born August 24, 1977) is an American author, YouTube content creator, podcaster, and philanthropist. His books have more than 50 million copies in print worldwide, including '' The Fault in Our Stars'' (2012), which is ...

. The building is still in use today, with many original features including iron-work second-floor galleries.

Presidents

Notable members

Amongst the historic and contemporary members are the following:

References

Sources

Association of Independent LibrariesThe National Archives

External links

Society website
{{authority control Regional and local learned societies of the United Kingdom Buildings and structures in Newcastle upon Tyne Culture in Newcastle upon Tyne Philosophical societies in the United Kingdom 1793 establishments in England Organizations established in 1793 John and Benjamin Green buildings and structures Charities based in Tyne and Wear