Reading Borough Libraries are responsible for public library provision in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

town of

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...

, Berkshire.

History

Despite the

Public Libraries Act 1850 The Public Libraries Act 1850 (13 & 14 Vict c.65) was an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament which first gave local boroughs the power to establish free public libraries. The Act was the first legislative step in the creation of an enduring natio ...

it was not until the 1870s that serious thought was given to the creation of a free public library in Reading.

Reading Borough Council Reading Borough Council is the local authority for the Borough of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. Berkshire is purely a ceremonia ...

could not agree to raise the rate necessary to fund a

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 ...

and as a result in 1875 William Isaac Palmer, of the Huntley & Palmers biscuit firm decided to personally fund the setting up and running of a Free Library in West Street. This proved very popular and won over opponents of free libraries, leading to the adoption of the Public Libraries Act in Reading in 1877 and the beginning of the library service. While the contents of Reading Free Library were donated by Palmer to the borough, it was decided that a new building was needed. A new library was included in the plans drawn up in 1879 for an extension to the Reading Town Hall which would also include a new museum (later to become the

Museum of Reading Reading Museum (run by the Reading Museum Service) is a museum of the history of the town of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire, and the surrounding area. It is accommodated within Reading Town Hall, and contains galleries describing th ...

). This new Library opened in October 1882 and soon proved very popular. In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, responsibility for library services was transferred to Berkshire County Council, which was itself abolished in 1996 as part of a local government reform, and the functions returned to the borough council. Gradually library provision extended throughout Reading with the building of more libraries in other parts of the town. Today the library service has seven branches and also runs the library service in Reading Remand Centre.

Reading Central Library

External links

Reading Libraries website

References

*Reading Borough Libraries (2005)
Reading Borough Libraries
Retrieved 12 August 2005. {{Authority control Organizations established in 1877

Libraries A library is a collection of Document, materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or electronic media, digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a ...

1877 establishments in England