Skip to content
The Great Britain Guide

Historic libraries · Scottish Islands

Orkney Library and Archive

Orkney Library and Archive — public library in Orkney Islands, Scotland, UK.

Orkney Library and Archive

Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence

Plan your visit

Typical visit
45 min–1.5 h

About

Orkney Library and Archive is a historic library in the United Kingdom. Managed by Orkney Islands Council. Address: KW15 1AG. Wikidata describes it as: "public library in Orkney Islands, Scotland, UK". Coordinates: 58.9821°, -2.9651°.

Photo gallery

From the Wikipedia article

Orkney Library and Archive is a Scottish public library service based in Kirkwall, Orkney. Founded in 1683, Orkney Library is the oldest public library in Scotland. Its rules date from 1815. It has become known for its popular, humorous Twitter account.

Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.

Background

History

The Orkney Library and Archive was founded in 1683 with a bequest of 150 books from William Baikie. The collection was kept at the local manse before being transferred to St Magnus Cathedral. In 1740 the collection was moved to the Old Tollboth. In 1815 a number of subscribers to the collection founded The Orkney Library. The library was a subscription-only service until 1890 when a donation from Andrew Carnegie allowed the library to adopt the 1850 Public Libraries Act. A further donation was made by Carnegie in 1903 for a dedicated building. The Carnegie Library on Laing Street was opened by Carnegie himself in 1909. It is no longer used as a library, but it is protected as a listed…

Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Coordinates
58.9821, -2.9651
Postcode
KW15 1AG
Parliamentary constituency
Orkney and Shetland

Sources

Other places nearby

Loading nearby places…

Nearby

Frequently asked questions

Where is Orkney Library and Archive?
Orkney Library and Archive is in the Scottish Islands, United Kingdom (postcode KW15 1AG).
Who runs Orkney Library and Archive?
Orkney Library and Archive is operated by Orkney Islands Council.
How do I get to Orkney Library and Archive?
Drivers can navigate to postcode KW15 1AG. It sits within the Orkney and Shetland parliamentary constituency.