Greater Victoria Public Library

Emilly Carr Branch in Saanich

Prior to 1864, Victoria was served by at least two small, private lending libraries. In 1858, for instance, The Gazette described a library and reading room opened by a Mr W. F. Herre. This private library, located in the Hibben and Carswell Building on Yates Street near the corner of Wharf Street, was "fitted up in a very neat and comfortable style...". It was, the writer conceded, "yet limited, but so soon as the books can be obtained from San Francisco, [it] will be greatly enlarged." The writer further explained that Mr Herre's library "filled a much needed want of the town".

In 1861, the Victoria Literary Institute was founded. The Victoria Literary Institute's objective as described in its constitution was "the formation of a Library, Reading Room, and Museum; the delivery of Lectures, and the diffusion of Literacy and Scientific knowledge among the people of Victoria." The Institute's shareholder's paid twenty-five dollars as well as a monthly fee of one dollar. Subscribers paid a five dollar entrance fee plus one dollar per month, or they could choose to pay for a lifetime membership at one hundred dollars. The Victoria Literary Institute however was only able to provide a series of evening lectures during the 1861-62 winter before being dissolved in the summer of 1862.[4]

Another early library—that of the British Columbia division of the T. Eaton Company—was started in 1862 by department store manager David Spencer..

On December 16, 1864 the local Mechanics' Institute created Victoria's first community-oriented lending library. Located on Bastion Street, the library's collection included books donated by James Douglas (Governor). The Institute's rooms were "well lighted and warmed, and with their copious supply of reading matter, [formed] one of the pleasantest [sic] places in the city in which to pass a quiet hour."

In October, 1886, the Mechanics' Institute informed Victoria's city council that it intended to wind up its affairs and offered the book collection to the City. A referendum followed, and a majority of voters—fearing increased taxes—rejected the proposal as an unnecessary "frill."

The books, however, were purchased by Mayor James Fell (with personal funds) and kept in storage. A subsequent vote, held little more than a year later, resulted in the City's acceptance of the books and the beginning of Greater Victoria's first truly public library.

In 1889, the Mechanics' Institute collection of 4,150 volumes was presented to the City of Victoria as the nucleus of a new public library. An additional 389 works, valued at $500, were presented to the library by English publishers Cassells and Co.. The City, however, could not afford a purpose-built library; therefore, the collection was housed in rooms located in "Spencer's Arcade" (possibly provided by the YMCA) on Broad Street.

Despite its difficult political and financial beginnings, the new Victoria Public Library that opened on May 10, 1889, fulfilled a clear and present need. According to a Colonist newspaper article, "Since the closing of the Mechanics' Institute, Victorians in the commoner walks of life have sorely missed the opportunities afforded of obtaining good and instructive reading [material]." The first book lent was The Life of Hon. George Brown. (Probably Alexander Mackenzie's The Life and Speeches of the Hon. George Brown published in Toronto in 1882.) It was borrowed by Victoria's Mayor John Grant.

The Victoria Public Library was located in the YMCA building on Broad Street for only two years. In 1892, possibly as a cost-saving measure, the City council ordered the Library moved to rooms in the City Hall.

In 1902 a bylaw was passed to limit library funding to $5,000 per year. In 1903, council deliberated over a permanent site for a library building. Two locations were chosen, with a price difference of $700. Council was against the higher priced property on the northwest corner of Yates and Blanshard Streets. But Stephen Jones, advocate of this site, broke the impasse by offering to pay the additional costs.

In 1903, a by-law created a board of three commissioners (one being a member of council) to administer the library. The first commissioners—Rev. Canon Beanlands, E. O. S. Scholefield (of the Provincial Library), and Alderman Thornton Fell (Chairman)—first met on May 15, 1905. Meanwhile, construction of the new Carnegie library had begun in 1904. The neo-Classical stone building, constructed for $53,000, was financed by Andrew Carnegie. It was completed in 1905, but the library's collection remained in its makeshift quarters at City Hall until January 2, 1906, when it moved to the new building.

The Library's early years in the new building were characterized by disputes between the Library Commissioners and the city council. The Library's books and other materials provoked controversy, and candidates for public office made "political capital" of the fact that works such as The Decameron were available to borrow. Although the Library Commissioners refused to remove the criticized works, they were moved to a shelf in the librarian's office. On the other hand, the Commissioners refused to allow religious newspapers (such as The Christian Science Monitor) on the shelves. (This policy was reversed around 1914.)

Weeks after taking over the new quarters, the matter of Sunday openings was before the Library Commissioners. In 1918, the Board maintained the policy of Sunday openings, despite the presence of city detectives, who (according to Pagett, 1934) would "visit the library, parade around on Sunday and subject the librarian in charge to heavy quizzing as to infringement of Sunday observance statutes."

When this library building opened in 1906, books were kept in "closed stacks" that did not allow public access. Instead, a user would request an item, and the librarian or page (clerk) would retrieve it. However, to let patrons know whether a book was in or out, the new library was equipped with a recently developed "indicator system". But this English system, which involved red and blue signals (see Pagett, 1934), required a staff of several librarians to keep it up-to-date. Therefore, in 1911, Victoria Public Library borrowers were allowed access to the stacks for the first time.

Under the leadership of chief librarian Helen Stewart, a library school was inaugurated as part of the Victoria Library. One student, Margaret J Clay, succeeded Stewart in 1924. Other graduates who went on to prominent positions included Margaret Crompton (later Mrs Thurston Taylor), who became reference librarian at the Enoch Pratt Free Library ; Phyllis Knowles (later Mrs Byron Blood), who was cataloguing librarian at the Webb Institute of Naval Architecture; and Elsie Taylor, who became assistant cataloguer at the American Library in Paris.

When the library opened in the Carnegie building, only the first floor was used. But by 1910, that floor had become too small to serve the needs of Victoria's growing community. The reading room was therefore moved to the second floor. At about this time a "Chess and Draughts Room" (for chess and checkers) was also opened on the second floor. Noise from the "gamesters," however, disrupted reading room users and the games were moved to an upstairs room in 1913, where they remained there for another ten years. Rooms in this upper floor were also used (prior to 1912) by the Natural History Society and the Victoria Musical Society.

Although the idea of a children's department had been considered in 1910, that year's costs to re-arrange existing departments (and create the games room) left no funds to begin children's services. But the Library's commissioners explained the benefits of a "children's room" to City Council, hopeful the next year would bring the necessary funds:

In the first place the room is designed that the child may be introduced, under careful supervision, to that wonderful fairyland which is the bookworld, so that the little seeker after pleasure or knowledge may be started on the right path. If a child's reading is left to haphazard choice, it is not unlikely that his or her taste may become more or less perverted, simply because there has been no one to advise or to guide; in any event it is more than probably that in such cases a taste for the cheap and ephemeral will be acquired at the expense of an appreciation of what is best and purest in literature. It is the aim of the children's librarian to bring together the children and the right books under the most favorable conditions.

The first children's department opened in 1913. The first children's librarian was Mrs Lillian B Steinberger. She was succeeded in 1914 by Mary Hughes, a graduate of the Carnegie Library Training School of Pittsburgh.

The Library's core funding came from the City of Victoria, but residents of Oak Bay, Esquimalt and Saanich were able to use the library without restrictions. In 1912, however, the Library Commissioners asked each of these municipalities for an annual fee of $100, which would be applied to new book purchases. Fifteen months later, and no money having been received, the Commissioners requested $250. By January, 1914, when Commissioners requested $500 from each municipality, Oak Bay contributed this amount. However, instead of applying the amount to new book purchases (as contracted with Oak Bay), the City of Victoria intended to use it to reduce the City's tax levy. Since this was not the purpose for which the Commissioners contracted with Oak Bay, the cheque was returned.

Attempts by Library commissioners to obtain contributions from surrounding municipalities continued until at least 1919. And well into the 1950s (and possibly not until the operating agreement of 1966) representatives of the other municipalities served by the Victoria Public Library had no representation (or else voice, but no vote) on the board of the Victoria Public Library.

In 1924, Margaret Clay became chief librarian. Her term of office, which lasted until 1952, was a time of much change for the library. One former GVPL librarian characterized this period as "a series of struggles that forged the old 'free library' into a 20th century public library" (Teece; 1989).

November 1949: Plans approved for a four-storey addition to the original Carnegie Library. The successful bidder was Luney Bros. & Hamilton ($224,500). This would replace the original building—designed to hold 15,000 volumes. By 1947, it held 76,000.

December 1949: Referendum to approve $350,000 for new construction, furnishings, and renovations to the existing Carnegie Library building.

Library operated in temporary quarters at the Pantorium building, corner of Fort and Quadra Streets.

Monday October 15, 1951: New addition officially opened. Departments gradually moved back.

October 1952: Library Board decision to acquire a Bookmobile..

April 5, 1954: Bookmobile service begins, although the decision to provide bookmobile service had been made in 1952. A newspaper editorial of the time expressed some dismay that such a service was even necessary:

By taking the books to the people, rather than requiring the people to come to the books, the board feels it will help to encourage good reading. Perhaps it is unfortunate that such a service should be considered necessary. It is nevertheless a symbol of the age and one which must be faced if the library is to extend its usefulness beyond the ranks of those who make use of the centrally located downtown building.

The bookmobile route included Mount Newton Crossroad, Saanichton Agricultural grounds, Elk Lake and the eastern part of Central Saanich, Brentwood, and Wilkinson Road. However, the launch of the new service was overshadowed by the circumstances surrounding the dismissal of John Marshall, first director of bookmobile services.