Shhhh! This is a blog post about libraries.
Libraries are important institutions that have been part of our lives. Whether in the background of our lives or as a destination for a specific purpose, libraries are a foundational part of any community. Let’s look at the history and what services they provide today. You might have been missing out on vital resources that could improve your life and finances.
History of Libraries
Originating from the Latin word Libraria, meaning “place storing books”, over five thousand years ago, is the origin of the word library. As expected, the first libraries served to maintain archival records. This mainly included clay tablets and other fragments containing various languages.
The Fertile Crescent in Southwest Asia is home to the first recorded library. If you want to see the location for yourself, you will have to travel to Mosul, Iraq. Known as The Library of Ashurbanipal, the oldest was founded in the 7th Century B.C. and contained a collection of 30,000 cuneiform tablets. The library was named after Ashurbanipal, who was the last king of the Assyrian Empire. This contained a nice variety of texts, including legal documents, epics, medical journals, and much more.
The remaining contents of this library are currently held by the British Museum because two British archaeologists recovered the artifacts. The development across Great Britain and Ireland began 1500 years ago. The library played a crucial role in the community’s social and intellectual development.
Golden Age of Libraries
In 1598, the ancestor of public libraries was founded in the Francis Trigge Chained Library. The name “Chained” is literal in this case. The books were originally chained together! This is considered the ancestor because you did not need to be a member of a church or college to be a patron of the library. A fun fact is that it contained both Catholic and Protestant artifacts. This was a unique situation due to the religious conflicts of the period. The Library was a safe place for both religions to showcase their personal artifacts.
Chetham’s Library in Manchester was founded in 1653. This is considered the oldest library in Britain. Public libraries began to appear in more of Britain in the mid-1800s after the Public Libraries Act of 1850 took effect. This act established public libraries in local boroughs and was a step toward providing the public with free access to information.
Private libraries
Libraries came in different forms. Some people wanted their own private collections. Private libraries of personal books, rather than public records, first appeared in Ancient Greece. These were seen as a status symbol. Showing off how big your library is was on the same level as having hot water and nice bathrooms.
Another version of private libraries involved “Gentlemen Only” libraries. In some of these libraries, it cost one guinea and five schillings a year to access to the newsroom and coffeehouse. The contents of the library were seen at the time as high-brow. Fiction was practically not existent. The only books that were on the shelves were history, antiquities, and geography.
In America, Benjamin Franklin led the charge for libraries. In Philadelphia, Franklin formed the Junto. This was a club that had a mission for mutual improvement. This club was full of affluent men, who were able to purchase books. They had enough that they ultimately pulled their resources together to create their own private library.
Expansion
While these private libraries were popping up, newly formed America had an idea for their own library. James Madison proposed a Congressional Library in 1783. When John Adams became President in 1800, he signed an act of Congress to provide the funding to purchase books that may be of use of Congress.
The new books and maps found its first home in the White House. British troops in 1814 burned the requested contents when they burned the White House. Thomas Jefferson took it upon himself to provide more than double the amount of burned books. Jefferson’s collection formed the core of the early iteration of what would become the Library of Congress.
Modern Function
In America, public libraries first started as Athenaeums. These were more like cultural community centers that had books among other forms of entertainment, including art galleries, museums, and concert halls. This, thankfully, did not stray too far from the current functionality of libraries.
There are so many untapped resources ready for you. Subscriptions, unlike in the past, are free. All you need to do is show up with proof of address and you have access to so many resources. Here are some that may appeal to you!
Collections Services
Research Services
Offsite Requests
Advanced Requests
Access to Other Institutions
- METRO
- MaRLI
- HathiTrust
Copies and Reproductions
Digital Files
Prints for Decorative or Research Use
Book Scanning
Microfilm
File Downloading
Interlibrary Services
- Interlibrary Services provides access to materials such as those held at outside the NYPL system. These materials include books, recordings, microfilm, copies of articles or portions of books. If you have a current card, you may submit and manage your Interlibrary Loan requests online.
Employment and Financial Services
- Money Matters – Financial Literacy courses
- Job Search Central
- Smallbiz – Smallbiz.nypl.org links business owners to events, information, and tools to help growing businesses.
SCORE – SCORE provides free, in-depth business counseling for business owners and small businesses.
Community Resources
Immigrant Services – Helps non-English speaking immigrants understand and interact with the culture, government, and educational system of the United States.
Correctional Services
NYPL’s Correctional Services offers regular, sustainable, and quality services to justice-involved people and their families in and around New York.
Services for Adults and Young Adults
The NYPL provides information and assistance to those seeking to obtain government ID, filing income taxes, and enrolling in a health insurance plan through the Health Insurance Marketplace.
Services for 50+ Adults – As the average age increases with the aging of the Baby Boom generation—generally accepted as those born from 1946 to 1964.
Services for People with Disabilities
Talking Book and Braille Service – The Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library operates a books-by-mail program that delivers thousands of recorded and braille titles postage-free.
Books by Mail – The NYPL’s Books by Mail Service provides books to homebound people of all ages who live in the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island.
School Services
Center for Educators and Schools – The NYPL’s Center for Educators and Schools (CES) devotes its resources to making all of the Library’s resources accessible and useful for educators. Find programs and services tailored for the educator community, such as book lists, credit-bearing workshops, special access to exhibitions, tips on teaching with primary source materials, and much more.
MyLibraryNYC – Teachers at participating MyLibraryNYC schools can order books and teacher sets to delivere directly to their school—for free!
These are all at your disposal in NYC. Do not be a stranger in your neighborhood and see for yourself!
