#onthisday October 1884, Libraries Opened

Although provision had been made for the establishment of free public libraries in Ireland since 1855 it was not until 1883 that Dublin Corporation formed a Public Libraries Committee. In April, 1883, the committee recommended "that two libraries be established at an annual cost of 1,000 pounds; from the Borough Funds and that a Committee be appointed to establish and manage the libraries". Two Georgian tenement houses were subsequently secured at No 106 Capel Street and No 22 Thomas Street and both libraries opened to the public #onthisday (1st October) 1884.

Left: Capel Street Library 

The public library at Capel Street was opened by Lord Mayor William Meagher a few hours before its sister institution on Thomas Street. The library was designed to serve the north side of the city. To mark the occasion, the Library Association of the United Kingdom held its Annual Conference in Dublin for the first and only time. Conference delegates attended the opening ceremony. Patrick Grogan, formerly a librarian at Maynooth College, became the first librarian at Capel Street. The staff was composed of a librarian, three library assistants, and a hall porter. The Capel Street library proved popular with the inhabitants of what was then a heavily industrialised area of the city. A newsroom had to be constructed at the rear of the building to accommodate 400 readers. A Ladies Reading Room was opened on 24 May 1895 and attracted a monthly attendance of 780. The daily average of books issued in 1901 was almost 300 volumes. In 1902 the daily average attendance in the newsroom was 1,200.

Capel Street Library finally closed its doors in 1986.

Right: Thomas Street Library 

The public library at Thomas Street was opened by the Lord Mayor a few hours after its sister institution on Capel Street and designed to serve the south side of the city. Matthew D. Weir, formerly associated with the library at Clongowes Wood College, became the first librarian at Thomas Street. Like the Capel Street branch, the staff was composed of a librarian, three library assistants, and a hall porter.

Thomas Street library closed its doors to the public exactly 99 years later on 1 October 1983.

Below: Capel Street Library interior, 1965

Below: An idiosyncratic feature of the Thomas Street Library was the open fire in the reading room 

These photos are from the Dublin City Council Photographic Collection. View more photos in our image gallery 'Dublin City Libraries: Part of Our Built Heritage'.