User:Maolduin/Brixton Library

Brixton Library is located on Brixton Hill, by Windrush Square, in Brixton, in the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The Library opened in 1893, and is one of several historical libraries in the vicinity which were built by Henry Tate. It is a public library.

Henry Tate and the foundation of Brixton Library
Henry Tate was the financial and organisational force behind the foundation of Brixton Library. The son of a clergyman, when he was 13 he became a grocer's apprentice in Liverpool. After a seven-year apprenticeship, he was able to set up his own shop. His business was successful, and grew to a chain of six stores by the time he was 35.

In 1859 Tate became a partner in John Wright & Co. sugar refinery, selling his grocery business in 1861. By 1869, he had gained complete control of the company, and renamed it to Henry Tate & Sons. In 1872, he purchased the patent from German Eugen Langen on a method of making sugar cubes, and in the same year built a new refinery in Liverpool.

Tate rapidly became a millionaire, and donated generously to charity. In addition to his donations which eventually gave rise to the Tate Gallery, his anonymous and discreet gifts included £42,500 for Liverpool University, £3500 for Bedford College for Women, and ???? for building a free library in Brixton; additional provisions were made for libraries in Balham, South Lambeth, and Streatham. There was £10,000 for the library of Manchester College, Oxford, and, also to Manchester College, £5000 to promote the ‘theory and art of preaching’. In addition he gave £20,000 to the (homoeopathic) Hahnemann Hospital in Liverpool in 1885, £8000 to the Liverpool Royal Infirmary, and £5000 to the Queen Victoria Jubilee Institute, which became the Queen's Institute for District Nurses. In 1887 he gave £5000 to the Tate Institute in Silvertown.

Tate was made a baronet in 1898, the year before his death. He lived at Park Hill by Streatham Common, south London. He married a second time after moving to London in 1881, and his wife, being born locally, influenced Tate in benefacting libraries in the local area. He is buried in nearby West Norwood Cemetery, the gates of which are located opposite a public library that he endowed. Park Hill became a nunnery after his death until refurbishment as housing around 2004.

Brixton Library today
Brixton Library is run by Lambeth Council, and is one of a network of ten public libraries in the borough. Joining the library is free of charge, and borrowing books is free, but there are charges for the hire of other items such as audiobooks and DVDs. Library members can borrow up to a maxiumum of 20 items or books, including up to 6 audiovisual items, (DVDs, and Language Courses).

Brixton Library has 35 public computers, with access to the internet, and various common software products for word processing, spreadsheets, etc. Six of these computers are in the Junior and Teenage sections, and reserved for younger library members, while the remainder are open to adults. Access to these computers is free, and borrowers can have up to a maximum of two hours per day access to a PC. The library also offers free WiFi access to library members. There are also printing and photocopying facilities in the library.

Regular events at Streatham Library include a Parent & Toddler Groups, on Tuesdays at 10:30am and Thursdays at 10:00am, which feature stories and music for children under five years. On Thursdays at 1:30pm there's a Tiny Rhyme time sesssion aimed at babies up to 18 months. The Manga Reading Group meets at 5:30pm on the second Monday of each month;

The Reading Group meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 6:30pm, and discusses a new book, usually literary fiction, that they have all read in the previous weeks. The Radical Readers Reading Group happens on the third Friday of each month at 7pm; The Chick Lit Reading group meets on ????

The Conversation Club is at 7pm on Mondays. This is a casual, informal way for people to meet and talk, so they can improve their English skills.

The Over 50's club meets on the last Friday of the month, and features activities such as talks, music, table quizzes, and gentle exercise classes.