Orkney Library And Archive on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
Orkney Library and Archive is a Scottish public library service based in
The Archive was established in 1973. The collection includes local history and genealogical records, photographs, sound recordings, and film. The collection also includes letters from William Galloway to Sir Henry Dryden. The Archive service was awarded accreditation in November 2017.
Kirkwall
Kirkwall ( sco, Kirkwaa, gd, Bàgh na h-Eaglaise, nrn, Kirkavå) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland.
The name Kirkwall comes from the Norse name (''Church Bay''), which later changed to ''Kirkv ...
, Orkney
Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) nort ...
. Founded in 1683, Orkney Library is the oldest public library in Scotland. Its rules date from 1815. It has become known for its popular, humorous Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
account.
History
The Orkney Library and Archive was founded in 1683 with a bequest of 150 books fromWilliam Baikie
William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conques ...
. The collection was kept at the local manse before being transferred to St Magnus Cathedral
St Magnus Cathedral dominates the skyline of Kirkwall, the main town of Orkney, a group of islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. It is the most northerly cathedral in the United Kingdom, a fine example of Romanesque architecture built ...
. In 1740 the collection was moved to the Old Tollboth. In 1815 a number of subscribers to the collection founded The Orkney Library. The library was a subscription-only service until 1890 when a donation from Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans in ...
allowed the library to adopt the 1850 Public Libraries Act
Public Libraries Act is a stock short title used in the United Kingdom for legislation ("Acts of Parliament") relating to public libraries.
List
* The Public Libraries Act 1850 (13 & 14 Vict c 65)
* The Public Libraries (Ireland) Act 1855 (18 & 1 ...
. A further donation was made by Carnegie in 1903 for a dedicated building. The new Carnegie Library opened on Laing Street in Kirkwall in 1909. The current library building on Junction Road, Kirkwall opened in August 2003.
Archive
The Archive was established in 1973. The collection includes local history and genealogical records, photographs, sound recordings, and film. The collection also includes letters from William Galloway to Sir Henry Dryden. The Archive service was awarded accreditation in November 2017.
Services
The Library offers access to over 145,000 items, including fiction and non-fiction titles, audiobooks, maps, eBooks, music CDs and DVDs.Twitter presence
The Library enjoys a good-natured and well publicisedTwitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
feud with Shetland Library. J.K. Rowling paid a surprise trip to the library book group in 2016.
References
External links
* {{Authority control Public libraries in Scotland Archives in Scotland Carnegie libraries in Scotland Education in Orkney Kirkwall