The Bodleian Library is one of the oldest libraries in Europe and contains over 12 million printed items, making it the second largest library in Britain, behind the British Library. The Bodleian is the principal library for the University of Oxford and has been a library of legal deposit for over 400 years.
St Hilda’s College Archive at the University of Oxford is the intended repository for all official records of the College, its members and related societies and businesses. Items have been collected with the aim of documenting past decisions and activities and preserving the collective memory of the Institution.
The College Library contains rare books and manuscripts, special collections and literary archives with items from the 9th to the 20th centuries. The College Archive has further records dating back to the 12th century, which include College statutes, governing body registers and various financial accounts and documents relating to St John’s as land owner, with accompanying estate records.
Somerville College in Oxford was one of the first institutions in the city to allow women to study at degree level. The documents contained within the archive provide a fascinating insight into the beginnings of women’s higher education, through official minutes, student records, academic staff records and various correspondence, photographs, reports and other ephemeral items.
The London Library is home to over 1 million books and periodicals. Written in over 50 languages, the collection incorporates works from the 16th century though to the present day. The key topics covered by the collection are ‘History’, from ancient to modern times, ‘Cultural Expression’, though literature and the arts, and ‘Thought and Life’, covering philosophy, religion and social science.
The National Archives in Kew is the UK government’s official archive, containing almost 1,000 years of history, with records ranging from parchment and paper scrolls through to digital files and archived websites.
The Wellcome Library is one of the world’s major resources for the study of medical history. Collections at the Library contain material relating to contemporary medicine and biomedical science in society. The Library also contains biographical records covering the lives of medical and healthcare personnel and patients.
The British Library is the largest in the Britain, holding over 150 million items, in most known languages. The Library receives a copy of every publication produced in the UK and Ireland. The collection includes manuscripts, newspapers, drawings, maps, prints, music scores, patents and various ephemeral items, such as 8 million stamps.
The British Museum was founded in 1753, becoming the first public national museum in the world. The Museum has ten curatorial and research departments, covering various world regions, coins and medals, conservation and scientific research, antiquities and prints and drawings.
The Brynmor Jones Library is housed at the University of Hull and provides access to books, journals and electronic databases. The library is also home to a collection of rare books, dating from the 15th century and British Artwork from 1890-1940, featuring the work of artists such as Stanley Spencer and Walter Sickert.
The William Andrews Clark Memorial Library in Los Angeles is one of the University of California’s major libraries, holding rare books and manuscripts, with a particular focus on English literature and history (1641-1800), the works of Oscar Wilde and fine printing.
The Birmingham central library opened in 2013 and is now one of the largest public libraries in Europe. Collections at this library have been designated as ‘outstanding’ by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. The Library collects and preserves documents relating to the people, business and institutions of the City of Birmingham, spanning from the 12th to the 21st centuries.
The libraries at the University of Birmingham contain over 1.8 million printed books, 85,000 printed journals and a vast array of additional online material. Topics covered in the collections include History, English, Law, Medicine, Politics and Languages.
The Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies collection contains printed material relating to local and family history for the county of Hertfordshire. Through the archive lots of documents are made available including cemetery records, census returns, coroner’s records and Parish registers, through to county council records and records from schools, workhouses and businesses.
The Brotherton Library at the University of Leeds contains some of the UK’s most outstanding rare books and manuscripts. The Library also houses the University’s arts, social sciences and law collections.
Marlborough College is home to a number of significant and rare books, dating back to the 15th century. As well as key theological, historical, mathematical and scientific works, the College also contains items central to the College’s past such as diaries, school lists and meeting minutes, volumes of the Marlburian publication and copies of prize winning essays from the mid-19th centuries.
The Sheffield Archives & Local Studies collects, preserves and makes available documents and information concerning the local area, and South Yorkshire in general, from the 12th century, through to the present day. Items include school records, obituaries, and electoral, cemetery and parish registers.
The Bedfordshire & Luton Archives are found in the city of Bedford. The aim of the archive is to collect and preserve the documentary heritage of the people and places of the county of Bedfordshire, as well as making documents available for research purposes. The documents held at the archives span over 800 years of Bedfordshire history, sourced from both official and private holdings, for example, church records and government papers, through to individual family and business archives.