State Library of NSW Australia

Beginnings, 1826–1836

On 13 March 1826 a small group of well-to-do Sydney gentlemen met at the Sydney Hotel to discuss regulating access and loans to the valuable collection of books being acquired by the 'Sydney Australian Subscription Library and Reading Room'. Their concerns were keenly felt, for, as with most privileged men of their age, knowledge about the new practical sciences and philosophies were acquired through personal endeavour rather than through professional training. In Sydney these concerns were amplified by the lack of universities or public schools teaching sciences; and the fact almost all books which came off the printing presses in Europe spent months at sea before finding themselves in the hands of Sydneysiders.

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Read more: https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/stories/origins-state-library-new-south-wales-1826-1869