History of the Library
The naming of the Library
The State Library of New South Wales traces its origins to 1826, with the opening of the Australian Subscription Library. In 1869, the New South Wales Government took over responsibility for the Library and created the Sydney Free Public Library. In 1895 it was renamed the Public Library of New South Wales, and in 1975 it became the State Library of New South Wales.
The building of the Library
In December 1827 operations began in rented premises in Pitt Street, and for the next two years the Library led a peripatetic existence—a few years in George Street, then Bridge Street, Macquarie Street and Macquarie Place. In 1845 it finally moved into its own new building on the corner of Bent and Macquarie Streets, approximately where the Aurora Place development now stands.
By 1869 the subscription library was hopelessly in debt, and the New South Wales Government was persuaded to buy it for £5100 (£1500 for the books and £3600 for the building). In September 1869, the Sydney Free Public Library opened its doors with a stock of 20 000 volumes.
The Mitchell Wing: The Library soon outgrew its premises, and a new wing was built in the mid-1880s. By the turn of the century this too was outgrown, and plans were prepared for a completely new ‘national’ library building. The stimulus for this was David Scott Mitchell’s offer of his immense and unrivalled collection of Australiana to the people of New South Wales. One condition of his offer was that a new building be erected to house the collection as a separate library. Work on the Mitchell Wing started in 1906 and was completed in 1910. It houses the Mitchell Library reading rooms, work areas and galleries.
The Dixson Wing: It was another 20 years before more building took place on the site of the national library. The Dixson Wing, completed in 1929, was added to the south side of the Mitchell Wing to provide storage and gallery space for the extensive collection of historical paintings presented by Sir William Dixson.
In 1939 work began on the central portion of the building, which includes the portico, the ornate vestibule with its reproduction of the Tasman Map in marble mosaic, and the main reading room. The building was ready for occupation in June 1942, and the Library was at last under one roof.
In 1964, the final section of the sandstone Mitchell Wing, uniform in style, was added to the south east corner. Within 10 years the Library had outgrown this space too.
The Macquarie Street Wing: Work began on the Macquarie Street Wing in 1983 and it was opened in 1988 (Australia’s bicentenary) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in company with Prince Philip. The new building fronts Macquarie Street and links up with the Mitchell Wing above ground by an unobtrusive first-floor bridge and below ground at a number of points. Mr Andrew Andersons, the design architect, had excelled himself in designing an attractive and welcoming building flooded with natural light that will continue to endear itself to countless Library users.
