Originally published in Library Life (Online), Jun 2019; n.473:p.38. (I guest edited this issue!! It was very exciting!!!)
1860s: RISE OF MECHANICS INSTITUTE LIBRARIES
In many parts of New Zealand, we have our towns’ Mechanics Institutes or Athenaeum to thank for the establishment of the first public libraries. Some of New Zealand’s earliest libraries began life as the projects of Mechanics Institutes – places of self-improvement for skilled workers and craftsmen.
Mechanics Institutes had existed in Britain since the 1820s, and revolutionised education access for working-class people. Professionals and workers alike could visit their local Mechanics Institute and learn more about science, engineering and technical skills. Functioning like a Victorian precursor to Community Education classes, Mechanics Institutes in New Zealand aimed to provide an intellectually stimulating place for men to improve themselves in their leisure time.
Over time, Mechanics Institutes evolved from places of study to places where people could enjoy some light educational entertainment, from books and magazines to music and theatre. New Zealand institutes organised events as diverse as Shakespeare performances, choral groups, Maori language classes, and museum exhibitions. Regular lectures by both local and touring speakers were popular.
It is arguably as an establisher of lending libraries and reading rooms that Mechanics Institutes had the biggest impact on New Zealand society. Institutes offered their paying members use of Reading Rooms in the evenings with access to books, newspapers and internationally-popular magazines.
Sometimes taking ownership of the collections of earlier failed attempts at public libraries, Mechanics Institutes throughout New Zealand provided a safe and inviting space for perusing the top titles of the day. Mechanics Institutes and Athenaeums stepped into a gap left in many settlers’ lives, ensuring readers half a world away from Europe still had access to new literature. They also did something that still shapes the library landscape today – they helped to cement the idea that public libraries are a vibrant and vital part of New Zealand’s communities.
1860s: RISE OF MECHANICS INSTITUTE LIBRARIES
In many parts of New Zealand, we have our towns’ Mechanics Institutes or Athenaeum to thank for the establishment of the first public libraries. Some of New Zealand’s earliest libraries began life as the projects of Mechanics Institutes – places of self-improvement for skilled workers and craftsmen.
Mechanics Institutes had existed in Britain since the 1820s, and revolutionised education access for working-class people. Professionals and workers alike could visit their local Mechanics Institute and learn more about science, engineering and technical skills. Functioning like a Victorian precursor to Community Education classes, Mechanics Institutes in New Zealand aimed to provide an intellectually stimulating place for men to improve themselves in their leisure time.
Over time, Mechanics Institutes evolved from places of study to places where people could enjoy some light educational entertainment, from books and magazines to music and theatre. New Zealand institutes organised events as diverse as Shakespeare performances, choral groups, Maori language classes, and museum exhibitions. Regular lectures by both local and touring speakers were popular.
It is arguably as an establisher of lending libraries and reading rooms that Mechanics Institutes had the biggest impact on New Zealand society. Institutes offered their paying members use of Reading Rooms in the evenings with access to books, newspapers and internationally-popular magazines.
Sometimes taking ownership of the collections of earlier failed attempts at public libraries, Mechanics Institutes throughout New Zealand provided a safe and inviting space for perusing the top titles of the day. Mechanics Institutes and Athenaeums stepped into a gap left in many settlers’ lives, ensuring readers half a world away from Europe still had access to new literature. They also did something that still shapes the library landscape today – they helped to cement the idea that public libraries are a vibrant and vital part of New Zealand’s communities.
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