| Description |
Before the foundations were even laid, Newcastle writer Ellen Phethean was commissioned to tell the story of the building of Newcastle’s fabulous new City Library. This wonderful book is the result. It brings together, through archive photographs, a wealth of stunning new photography, the words of library users, library workers, the architects, the builders, the artists, just what our City Library is all about. Ellen takes the reader step by step through the history of the three City Libraries since Newcastle’s first public library opened on New Bridge Street in 1882. There was some opposition then to the city having a free library at all, funded by taxation for ‘a lot of hobbledehoys and people who would never be called on to pay a sixpence’! The second library replaced the first in 1968, and last November Her Majesty the Queen officially opened then new library on the same site. The photographs in the book explore the demolition of the old building, and why it had to go, the design of the light and airy new construction, the artwork that’s everywhere, and the historic book collections that form the core of the space. It’s a real celebration of Newcastle’s iconic new City Library. |