Women's Library facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Women's Library |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| The Women's Library reading room in the LSE library | |
| Country | England |
| Type | Library |
| Established | 1926 |
| Location | Lionel Robbins Building, The London School of Economics and Political Science, 10 Portugal Street, Westminster, London, WC2A 2HD |
| Collection | |
| Items collected | Books, journals, newspapers, magazines, sound and music recordings, archives, pamphlets, drawings and manuscripts |
| Size |
|
| Access and use | |
| Access requirements | Open to anyone with a need to use the collections and services and those coming to see exhibitions |
| Website | The Women's Library |
The Women's Library is a special library and museum in England. It focuses on women's lives and the women's movement in Britain during the 1800s and 1900s. The library has been collecting items since the mid-1920s. Its main collection started from a library set up by Ruth Cavendish Bentinck in 1909.
Since 2013, the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) has looked after the library. It is now part of the British Library of Political and Economic Science. You can find it in a special area called the Women's Library.
Contents
What the Library Collects
The Women's Library has a huge collection of items. It includes over 60,000 books and pamphlets. There are also more than 3,500 different magazines and journals. You can even find over 500 zines, which are small, self-published magazines.
The library has many scholarly books about women's history. It also has biographies, popular books, and government papers. There are also many newspaper clippings.
Museum Collection
The museum part of the library has over 5,000 objects. These include more than 100 banners used in campaigns for women's rights. There are also photographs, posters, badges, and textiles.
The library keeps over 500 collections of personal papers and group records. These range from small boxes to hundreds of boxes of documents.
Important Recognition
In 2007, the Women's Library collections were called "outstanding" by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. This means they are very important for the country and the world.
In 2011, some items about women getting the right to vote were added to UNESCO's UK Memory of the World Register. This shows how important these historical documents are.
History of the Library
The Women's Library has a long and interesting history. It grew from a group that worked for women's rights.
Early Beginnings
The library's story starts with the London Society for Women's Suffrage. This group began in 1867 to fight for women's right to vote. The main collection came from the Cavendish-Bentinck library, started in 1909.
Vera Douie became the first librarian on January 1, 1926. For 41 years, she helped the library grow. It changed from a small society library into a major resource known around the world.
At first, the library was in a converted pub in Marsham Street, Westminster. In the 1930s, this became Women's Service House. It was a big center for women near Parliament. Famous writers like Vera Brittain and Virginia Woolf were members. Politicians like Eleanor Rathbone also belonged to the library.
Changes and New Homes
During World War II, the library was damaged by bombs. It did not have a permanent home until 1957. Then, it moved to Wilfred Street, near Victoria railway station.
By this time, the society and library had changed their names. They became the Fawcett Society and the Fawcett Library. This was to honor Millicent Garrett Fawcett, a leader in the fight for women's vote. It also honored her daughter, Philippa Fawcett, who supported education.
Moving to Universities
In the 1970s, the Fawcett Society found it hard to keep the library going. In 1977, the City of London Polytechnic took it over. This university later became London Guildhall University in 1992.
The library spent almost 25 years in a small basement. It often flooded, but the collection still grew a lot. It became clear that the library needed a better home.
In 1998, the Heritage Lottery Fund gave £4.2 million for a new building. The chosen spot in Aldgate used to be a wash house, a place where women worked. The new building kept its old front. The library changed its name from "Fawcett Library" to "The Women's Library." It opened in February 2002.
The new building had a reading room, an exhibition hall, and spaces for learning. It also had special storage for the collections. In August 2002, London Guildhall University joined with another university. They became London Metropolitan University.
Under London Metropolitan University, the Women's Library held many exhibitions. These showed topics like women's right to vote, office work, and women's crafts.
Joining the LSE
In 2012, London Metropolitan University decided to find a new home for the library. They felt too many people from outside the university used it. A campaign called "Save the Women's Library" started. Over 12,000 people signed a petition to keep the library open. They called it "one of the most magnificent specialist libraries in the world."
The London School of Economics (LSE) offered to take care of the library. They promised to keep the collections together and develop them. They also offered jobs to the library staff. The library officially moved to the LSE on January 2, 2013. The old building stayed with London Metropolitan University.
Important Collections
The Women's Library holds many important collections. These include personal papers from famous women and records from important groups.
Personal Archives
Some of the personal collections are from:
- Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, a doctor
- Josephine Butler, a social reformer
- Emily Wilding Davison, a suffragette
- Millicent Garrett Fawcett, a leader for women's vote
- Virginia Woolf, a famous writer
- Eleanor Rathbone, a politician
Organisation Archives
The library also keeps records from groups like:
- The Fawcett Society
- The Artists' Suffrage League
- Papers about the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp
- The National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies
- The Women's Freedom League
- The Women's Institutes
Friends of the Women's Library
The Friends of the Women's Library is a group that helps the library. They have supported it for over 30 years. They raise money to buy rare items for the collection. They also help pay for recording interviews and for exhibitions. The Friends also arrange trips to places important to British women's history.
See also
In Spanish: Women's Library para niños
- Feminist Library, another library in London
- Fawcett Society, a UK charity and group
- Glasgow Women's Library
- Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom
- East End Women's Museum
