The Victorians had a strong belief in self-improvement and so the 1850 Public Library Act was an important act of political and social reform, leading to the formation of free public libraries. Prior to this date, it was only the upper and middle classes who could actually afford to buy new books and the latest magazines as, for the working classes, even the purchasing of secondhand books and magazines was usually beyond their limited means.

However, during the second half of the 19th century there was a great deal of concern expressed by the ruling classes, especially those of a Liberal perspective, with regard to the physical and moral health of the working classes. The Industrial Revolution and the development of urban slums had led to poor standards of living and common behaviour patterns which were deemed inferior and as such were regarded as a threat to a stable, civilised Victorian society.

Indeed, there was especially concern about how the lower classes spent their leisure time, particularly as most of it was spent drinking alcohol in public houses. Therefore, as was the case with the creation of public parks, the establishing of public libraries was seen by the Victorians as a way of directing the working classes towards more civilised and respectable behaviour. Public libraries were seen as necessary if the working classes were to achieve a better standard of education. Furthermore, it was believed that time spent in libraries would not only serve to quell drunkenness but may also possibly lead to a reduction in crime rates.

Public Library Bill
In fact, Liberal MPs including William Ewart and Joseph Brotherton began a campaign to obtain a free system of public libraries. In 1849 Ewart introduced his Public Library Bill in the House of Commons. However, it was met by significant hostility by Conservative MPs, who argued that it was the rate-paying middle and upper classes who would be forced to pay for a service that would be predominantly used by the working classes. Therefore, it was deemed to be a form of taxation that would be enforced without consent. Its opponents also suggested that the libraries could give rise to working class militancy on the premise that, instead of acting as a civilising agent, libraries would become centres for the working classes to group together and agitate for reform.

Moreover, many Conservatives saw no need for public libraries when literacy rates among the working classes were so low before the 1870 Education Act which later made primary education compulsory.

Consequently, the 1850 Public Libraries Act when it was introduced was actually permissive rather than compulsory and did not apply to all boroughs. Much to Ewart’s disappointment, it only applied to boroughs with populations of above 10,000 and also needed the consent of two thirds of the rate payers before it could be introduced necessitating also the holding of a referendum. In addition, other limitations were imposed: no more than a halfpenny in the pound could be levied from the rates and the funds raised could only be used to provide buildings and staff and could not be spent on the purchase of books. Despite its limitations, the Act represented a significant breakthrough as it had at least established in principle the importance of public libraries as a government provision.

Ireland and Scotland
Indeed, Stewart and Brotherton continued to campaign for increased funding and for a more comprehensive public library provision. Hence, in 1853 the Act was extended to include Ireland and Scotland, and a further amendment in 1855 not only increased the rate that could be levied to one penny in the pound but also gave the boroughs permission to use the money raised to buy much needed books, magazines and maps. In addition, the 1855 Act also extended the provision of public libraries so that, in addition to borough councils, a library authority could also be represented by an improvement board or commission, or also a parish vestry so long as they covered a minimum population of 5,000 people. This also meant that the provision of libraries could also be extended to include rural areas. In 1866 a further amendment was made to the Public Library Act which removed the population limit and the two thirds majority which was previously required, reducing it to a simple majority.

The first public libraries
The first public library set up under the Act was in Winchester in 1851 and in 1857 Norwich opened a library, museum and art school which was entirely funded under the provisions of the Act. Nevertheless, the growth of public libraries was very slow, so that by 1867 only 27 authorities in Britain had established them. In addition, the penny rate in the pound was hardly generous in terms of funding especially in deprived areas where there were many low-rated dwellings so that even if they were keen to open a library, library authorities were unable to do so without generous donations from private benefactors.

However, the situation changed dramatically in 1887, which was the year of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. Suddenly, in this year alone 77 public libraries were opened. The passing of the Education Act of 1870 also meant that a greater proportion of the working classes were literate or at least semi literate as the influence of the Act took effect. Furthermore, the 1880 and 1890s marked the emergence of private philanthropy which not only provided much needed funds to set up new libraries but also served to galvanise reluctant and cash-strapped local authorities into action.

Philanthropy
Famous philanthropists included Andrew Carnegie, the Scottish-American steel tycoon and Henry Tate, the Liverpudlian sugar merchant who also established the Tate Gallery in London in 1897. In addition, John Passmore Edwards, a Cornishman and a rich newspaper owner before becoming a Liberal MP, set up 15 libraries in Cornwall naming them the ‘Passmore Edwards Institutes’. Carnegie, however, was the most generous of these philanthropists and financed the establishment of the first library in Dunfermline, his native city, in 1883. This was followed by the sponsoring in 1904 of the first Carnegie library in England, which was opened at Keighley in West Yorkshire.

A flurry of a Carnegie Free Libraries flourished in towns and cities in England up until the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. Indeed, in 1913 the Carnegie United Kingdom Trust was established whose purpose was to improve the well-being of the working classes in Great Britain and Ireland by providing funds for library provision. Consequently, by 1914 62% of the population of England lived in an area where they had access to a public library.

The end of the First World War in 1918 was followed by the 1919 Public Library Act, which was seen as a legislative watermark as it served to consolidate all of the principle progress made to date for the provision of public libraries. Therefore, it removed the penny rate restriction of the 1855 act which had made local authorities so reliant upon philanthropic aid; meaning that after 1919 charitable organisations such as the Carnegie UK Trust provided much fewer grants to public libraries. Following the First World War, several major cities and towns including Manchester, Southampton, Sheffield and Huddersfield set up new large central libraries, either because they had no provision or because the older facilities were inadequate and were much in need of improvement.

Indeed, the 1930s may be said to have marked the pinnacle of the popularity of libraries, measurable by the number of visits made to libraries and the number of books being borrowed. This data was collected by the Board of Education showing that the services that libraries offered had never been as popular as they were at this in time. In fact, there had actually been an 84% increase in total loans between the years 1923-4 and 1931-2 showing just how popular the public libraries actually were in the early decades of the 20th century.

Therefore, the 1850 Public Libraries Act, although limited in scope, proved to be a groundbreaking piece of political and social reform paving the way through subsequent extensions and amendments for the eventual provision of a comprehensive public library service in Great Britain and Ireland.

The Victorian belief in self-improvement and paternalism had encouraged Liberal reformers like Ewart and Brotherton to take the initiative and to lobby Parliament for the provision of libraries so that the poor working classes could enjoy the same privileges as the middle and upper classes. Consequently, through the development of public libraries the Victorians provided subsequent generations with an important and enduring legacy which survives to this day.