Following high levels of interest in our Heritage Lottery Funded project, we are delighted to announce that we will be hosting an Open Day for members of the public on 7th May 2016.
The Open Day will give members of the public a unique opportunity to view the building and its treasures through a guided tour. Library Chairman, David Brazendale says: ‘Since 1797, the Athenaeum Library has provided information and knowledge to the people of Liverpool. The Athenaeum was not founded as a social centre but to provide information about the world to its Proprietors, but now it is vital that we open the resource to a wider public.
‘The Athenaeum Library is recognised as being amongst the best private libraries in Britain and the room in which it is housed has been described as the ‘finest room in the North.’ The library has over 60, 000 books, many of them rare and some of them unique; the Athenaeum collections open a window; not only on Liverpool’s heritage but on the history of Britain and the World.’
Having joined the project earlier this year, Archivist Nicola Hubberstey unveils new treasures every week. She says, ‘I think my favourite find at the moment is the Liverpool Civic Service League collection, as it holds so much information on Liverpool during the First World War and will be a gold mine for researchers. My job is fantastic as every day I discover a new treasure. Whenever I enter the Athenaeum Library, it never fails to make me gasp in wonder at the treasures it holds.
‘The Open Day is a great opportunity to gain an insight into one of Liverpool’s oldest and most prestigious institutions. We are going to have a display of archives relating to Nicholas Monsarrat including his desk and typewriter, which will be unveiled to the public for the first time. It’s going to be a great day with tours and talks on the history of the institution and the local area, along with displays of some of our treasures from the Library and Archive.’
The tours will start every hour from 11am, through until 3pm and will last approximately one hour. There will be refreshments on sale and talks in the Newsroom throughout the Open Day.
Visits and tours of the Athenaeum are by booking only and are funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. To book tickets, please visit: http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/the-athenaeum-10040178702. For queries or further information, please contact John Corbett or Anna Corbett at: peo@theathenaeum.org.uk or 0151 709 7770. Tickets are free of charge, however a discretionary donation upon arrival is greatly appreciated.