Halifax Libraries
&
Librarians

Contents:

• Halifax Central Library

• Halifax Reference Library

• Libraries, News Rooms & Reading Rooms

• Librarians

Halifax Central Library

There had been several private and subscription libraries in Halifax from the 18th century.

In 1890, Belle Vue House was sold to Halifax Corporation in 1899, and became Halifax Central (!) Library in 1890, and Belle Vue Museum in 1897. The library was located in a single-storey extension to the north of the house, and the museum was in the main house.

When the facilities at Belle Vue proved inadequate, the new Central Library opened next door to Northgate House in February 1983, at a cost of £1,800,000. The writer, Lady Antonia Fraser, performed the opening ceremony.

There are [or were] branch libraries at:

• Akroydon
• Bailiff Bridge
• Beechwood Road, Illingworth
• Bradshaw
• Brighouse
• Caddy Field
• Copley
• Cornholme
• Elland
• Greetland
• Hebden Bridge
• Hipperholme
• King Cross
• Luddenden
• Luddendenfoot
• Mixenden
• Mytholmroyd
• Northowram
• Ovenden
• Pellon
• Rastrick
• Ripponden
• Shelf
• Siddal
• Skircoat
• Southowram
• Sowerby
• Sowerby Bridge
• Stainland
• Todmorden
• Wainstalls
• Warley
• Walsden
• West Vale

The Central library is closed all day on Wednesdays

The Branch libraries have different opening hours

In July 2008, it was announced that the Central Library facilities and Northgate House, Halifax would be closed and the land sold for retail development. New premises would be built on the redeveloped Broad Street site.

In 2010, it was decided not to relocate the Central Library.

In October 2011, Calderdale Council's Cabinet voted to recommend that Northgate House and the Central Library and archives be disposed of and a new library and archive be built on a site near Square Spire.

The Council facilities from Northgate House are to be rehoused in existing Council properties.

Work on the new Library began in 2015 and will be accessible from the refurbished Piece Hall.

Halifax Reference Library

Located at Halifax Central Library, the Reference Library holds an extensive collection of archives, maps, photographs, books, pamphlets, histories and other documents of local interest.

It houses over 1,000,000 documents in the Calderdale section of the county archives.

If you plan to photocopy the documents, take a pocket-full of small change.

The Central library is closed all day on Wednesdays.

Many local branch libraries also have a reference section which is open to readers

Libraries, News Rooms & Reading Rooms

Akroyd Branch Library Akroydon Library Albert Place Working Men's Reading Room Bailiff Bridge Library Bank Top Library, Southowram Bankfield Library, Halifax Beechwood Road Library Bradshaw Branch Library Bradshaw Library Brighouse Library Brighouse Subscription Library Brighouse Working Men's Reading Room Brooks' Library, Halifax Caddy Field Branch Library Caddy Field Library Copley Library Cornholme Library Crimsworth Reading & Recreation Room, Pecket Well Cross Lee Library, Todmorden Dale Street Co-operative Society's Library Dean Clough Institute, Halifax Elland Library Elland Technical Institute & Library Ellen Royde Library, Elland Exchange News Rooms Green End Reading Room, Old Town Harry Greenwood & Sons Greetland Library Halifax Book Club Halifax Central Library Halifax Church Institute Halifax Circulating Library Halifax Circulation Library Halifax Co-operative Society Library Halifax Lending Library Halifax Mechanics' Institute Halifax Modern Library Halifax New Subscription Library Halifax Public Reading Room Halifax Subscription Library Harley Wood Library, Todmorden Hebden Bridge Co-operative Society Reading Room Hebden Bridge Library Hipperholme Public Library Illingworth Library King Cross Library

Lee Mount Library Luddenden Circulating Library Luddenden Library Luddendenfoot Library Mixenden Library Mudies Subscription Library Mytholmroyd Library News Rooms Northgate End Library Northowram Library Old Cock Library, Halifax Ovenden Library Pellon Library Pye Nest Library Rastrick Free Library Rastrick Library, Crowtrees Lane Rastrick Library, Ogden Lane Ripponden Library Ripponden Reading Room Joseph & Alfred Rushworth Shelf Library Siddal Library Silver Library, Hebden Bridge Martha Simpson Skircoat Library Southowram Library Sowerby Bridge Library Sowerby Library Stainland Library Talbot News Room Toadcarr Library, Todmorden Todmorden Free Public Library Todmorden Old Library Triangle Reading & Bath Rooms Victoria Library Fred Wade (Booksellers & Stationers) Limited Wainstalls Library Walsden Library Warley Library Waterhouse Street Library Wesley Court Reading Room West Vale Library Westgate Working Men's News Room, Elland

Librarians

• William Edward Armytage Axon
• James Edward Ball
• John Crowder
• Edward Green
• Muriel M. Green
• Louis Stanley Jastrzębski
• Edward Smith Keir
• Roberts Leyland
• James Lord
• John MacArthur
• Mary McArthur
• William Midgley
• Mrs Susannah Milner

Page Ref: KK_187

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