State Library of Victoria facts for kids

Quick facts for kids State Library Victoria
Established	1854; 171 years ago (1854)
Location	Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Collection
Size	2,277,209 monographs, newspapers and serials (30 June 2014)
Other information
Budget	$86.7M (FY 2013-14)
Director	Kate Torney (CEO)
Staff	273 (248.04 FTE)

The State Library of Victoria is a very important library in Melbourne, the capital city of Victoria, Australia. It is located on Swanston Street in the middle of the city. This amazing library holds over 1.5 million books and many other items. Some special items include the diaries of Melbourne's founders, John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner. You can also find books by Captain James Cook here.

History of the Library

A view of the library, its front area, and lawns from Swanston Street.

The idea to build a state library came from Charles La Trobe and Sir Redmond Barry in 1853. Charles La Trobe was the Lieutenant-Governor of Victoria at the time. They held a competition to find someone to design the new building. A local architect named Joseph Reed won. He also designed other famous buildings in Melbourne, like the Melbourne Town Hall and the Royal Exhibition Building.

On July 3, 1854, the new Governor, Sir Charles Hotham, placed the first stone for the library. He also laid the first stone for the University of Melbourne on the same day. The library first opened its doors in 1856. It had 3,800 books chosen by Sir Redmond Barry. Augustus H. Tulk became the first librarian a few months later.

The first main reading room was called the Queen's Reading Room. Today, it is known as Queen's Hall and opened in 1859. For a while, temporary buildings were used until 1909. Then, work started on a new building to celebrate the library's Jubilee (50th anniversary). This new part was the famous Domed Reading Room, which opened in 1913. It was designed by Norman G. Peebles.

Later, the library's original high windows in the dome were covered with copper sheets in 1959. This was done to stop water from leaking into the building.

For many years, the library was also home to Victoria's main art gallery and museum. But in the late 1960s, the National Gallery of Victoria moved to a new place. Later, the new Melbourne Museum was built in the Carlton Gardens in the 1990s.

The library had a big renovation project between 1990 and 2004. This project cost about AU$200 million. The main reading room closed in 1999 for this work. During the renovation, the dome's windows were put back in. The room reopened in 2003 and was renamed the La Trobe Reading Room.

Today, the rebuilt library has special areas for exhibitions. These include The Mirror of the World: Books and Ideas and The Changing Face of Victoria. There is also a display of pictures in the Cowen Gallery. The State Library of Victoria is one of the biggest libraries in the world that holds exhibitions.

Front Lawn and Statues

A view of the library from the left side, facing Swanston Street.

The green lawn in front of the library is a popular spot. Many people who work or study nearby at RMIT University come here for lunch. When the library was first built, it had a wooden fence around it. In the 1870s, a new wrought iron fence and gates were added. This fence was taken away in 1939, opening up the space.

You can see several statues in the entrance area:

• Two bronze lions stood at the front from the 1860s until 1937.
• A statue of Sir Redmond Barry was put up in 1887. It was designed by James Gilbert and built by Percival Ball.
• Saint George and the Dragon, by the English sculptor Sir Joseph Edgar Boehm, was put up in 1889.
• A statue of Jeanne d'Arc was added in 1907. It is a copy of the one by French sculptor Emmanuel Frémiet.
• A statue of Charles La Trobe, made by Australian sculptor Peter Corlett, was put up in 2006.

On Sundays, from 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM, people gather in front of the library. They take turns speaking about different topics in a speakers' forum.

Inside the Library

Reading Room and Dome

The La Trobe Reading Room, seen from the 5th floor.

The famous Domed Reading Room opened in 1913. It was designed by Norman G. Peebles. This room has eight sides and was made to hold over a million books. It can also seat up to 500 readers at once. The room is 34.75 meters wide and 34.75 meters high. The opening at the top, called an oculus, is almost 5 meters wide. When it was finished, this dome was the largest of its kind in the world.

In 1965, the La Trobe Building opened to hold the library's collection of Australian items. This collection has now been moved into the La Trobe Reading Room.

Arts Library

The library has a large and excellent collection of materials about art, music, and performing arts. This includes books, magazines, and recordings from all over the world.

Chess Room

The library has a special room just for chess. It has many items about the history of chess and how to play it. This includes a collection from the Anderson Chess Collection, which is one of the three largest public chess collections in the world. The room has many books and magazines about chess. There are also game tables with chessboards and pieces. You can also see historical chess items in glass cabinets. This room is a great place to read, play, and study chess.

Library Collections

Online Databases

Many of the library's online databases can be used from home. Anyone in Victoria who is a State Library User can access them. These databases include the full Encyclopaedia Britannica. They also have Oxford Reference dictionaries and encyclopaedias. You can find databases with articles from many different magazines and journals. There are also collections of newspapers from most major Australian and international papers from 2000 onwards. Plus, there are special databases for different subjects.

Images for kids

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  A statue of library founder Redmond Barry, located within the forecourt.

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  Melbourne Public Library, ca. 1860

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  Library forecourt, ca. 1864–1870

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  Library forecourt, ca. 1875, with recently constructed portico and cast iron fencing

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  Aerial view from above Swanston Street

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  A view of the forecourt

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  The Redmond Barry Reading Room

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  The library holds a significant amount of material related to bushranger and outlaw Ned Kelly, most notably the armour he wore during his final shootout with the police.

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  The State Library illuminated at night

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  State Library Victoria (Cowen Gallery - Stawell Room)

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  State Library Victoria (Cowen Gallery - McArthur Room)

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  State Library Victoria (Cowen Gallery)

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  State Library Victoria (Exhibition of Stained Glass - William Shakespeare in the Dome Gallery)

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  February 2014 - Library forecourt from Swanston Street, statue of Sir Redmond Barry, and members of the Public gathered on the lawns)

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  LaTrobe Reading Room in July 2019