Library Snapshot

History of the Library Service

Ipswich Library was first established by a group of local people in 1850. It became a School of Arts Library in 1858 and was then eligible to receive government assistance.

A School of Arts Hall was built in 1861. When this was extended a few years later, it was able to accommodate the lending library and reading rooms where Ipswich residents had access to a wide variety of newspapers and magazines. Although the Council took over management in 1868, it remained a "School of Arts Library" until 1947.

The library has had at least seven different locations since 1850 including the Old Town Hall (formerly the School of Arts), the Memorial Hall and the former Bank of Australasia building in d'Arcy Doyle Place. "In July 1850, when the town was a mere eight years old, a group of Ipswich people resolved that the present state and position of this rapidly increasing town make it desirable to establish a public institution for the supply of news and the diffusion of knowledge generally". Put simply, it was time Ipswich had a library.

Funds were raised by asking for donations and by charging an annual library fee. When enough money was raised, committee member Frederick Forbes travelled to Sydney to select the first supply of books. A small library and reading room were then set up in rented premises - possibly a timber building in Brisbane Street which had been built as a temporary court house.

In August 1858, the library committee formally became a School of Arts and applied for a grant of land and government funding. The application was successful and a School of Arts Hall was built in 1861. The library remained in the old timber building until 1864, when the hall was extended with an elaborate façade and front section. The library then moved into the extension.

The small community of Ipswich had managed to establish an impressive library. Newspapers and magazines were obtained from Australian capital cities and from England and Ireland - the overseas publications must have been months out of date, but were read eagerly. Books were obtained locally and from an agent in London - Longman and Co. By the early 1860s, there were more than 2000 volumes and the library had 200 subscribers. When new books were obtained, the event was considered so important that the titles were listed in "The Queensland Times".

Perhaps the most far-reaching achievement was the production of "Ipswich Punch", a humorous magazine based on the famous British "Punch". It was entirely hand-written and hand-illustrated, and there was just one copy of each edition, kept on a table in the library reading room. The authors produced it for fun, but it has survived as an important historical record which offers a vivid glimpse of Ipswich life in the 1860s.

The library received a major setback in 1866 when a severe financial depression affected Queensland. The voluntary committee found it hard to keep up payments on the new building and in 1868, it was forced to ask the Ipswich Municipal Council to take over management. The building became the Town Hall (although the name School of Arts Hall persisted for a long time) and the Council took responsibility for running the School of Arts library.

The library survived and, with the Council now supervising, continued to expand. A Californian newspaper was added to the list in 1870 and "The Englishwomen's Magazine" was ordered in 1871 to tempt more women to become subscribers. By the turn of the century, the Town Hall had become too small for the growing city and many discussions were held about extending it again or constructing a completely new building.

In 1918, a Memorial Hall was planned to honour Ipswich men who had fought in World War I. A group of aldermen suggested that there would be benefits if the Memorial Hall and Town Hall projects were combined. This idea was rejected but a compromise was achieved - the School of Arts Library could be moved out of the overcrowded Town Hall into the new building. Returned soldiers were offered free membership.

The library remained at the Memorial Hall until 1947. It was then moved into the former Bank of Australasia Building (cnr Brisbane St and d'Arcy Doyle Place) and the Council formally took over, ending the long connection with the School of Arts movement.

In 1975, the Library was moved to the former St. Paul's Young Men's Club Building (cnr Limestone Street and d'Arcy Doyle Place), then to leased premises in Bell Street and finally in 1995 to the purpose-built Global Information Centre in South Street.