, 1921-10-05
Great Library
Had Start In
Chicago Fire
English Author. Believing Library
Had Been Destroyed Started
Work Which Founded Second
Largest of kind in World

CHICAGO. Sept 23.4when Chi
cago this Fzii observes tho 50th an
adversary OF tho great fre that des-
troyed this city. it will recall that
its public library. now the second
largest in the world. was born In that
oo~nfagauon- Tho library owes its
start TO British sympathy for the
stricken city which found Its ex-
preston in hooks.
The prime mover in England was
Thomas Hughes, author o, Tom
Browns School Days His proposal
resulted in 1900 volumes besides
a sum OF money being sem here from
Great Britain. The children's room
in the library IL called the Thomas
Hughes Room"
Tho chief prize OF tho Chicago
public library is an autographed copy
on The Early Years OF the Prince
l~onsort' that Queen Victoria sent.
II was a volume OF memories OF her
husband hat she had had compiled.
The Queen inscribed IL for Chicago
on Nov. -. 1871, five weeks after the
fire OF Oct. .. and long before a city
library had taken shape hero.
Hughes had visited Chicago sew
eral vars before the fire and made a
number OF friends. On hearing Of
the disaster he enlisted Quen Vice.
toria. Gladstone. then premier. others
high Ia the government authors such
as Carlyle and ~pisracli and leading
publishers. They Joined their names
TO a circular OF appeal to the people
OF Great Britain.
Liberty Token Of Kinship.
Support was urged on the ground
that the new library Of Chicago is
to be a mark of sympathy now and
a token OF that sentiment OF kinship
which. independently OF circumstan-
ces and independently of every other
consideration. must ever powerfully
affect the different branches Of the
English race
The appeal was at once taken up
by the British prose. A noted pub
Usher at Leipsic began tho collection
OF books In Germany. A thousand
volumes were sent by the Germans.
This activity abroad led the cit..
xens of Chicago TO bestir themselves.
Hughes and his associates took It for
granted that Chicago had had a pub.
lie library and thai It had been des.
troyed- They supposed they were
helping to replace 1t. There had. how.
ever. been mono OF this sort before.
Chicago began to takc the neces.
sary steps TO start a library. on April
3. 1879. six months after tho fire
the city council passed an ordinance
for a free city library. The city then
got a law through the legislature au-
thorizing n library tax.
After its fearful experience, Chi
cago felt no place would be proper to
receive the precious books from
abroad except one hat was thoro
ughly fireproof. The only fireproof
thing left in the city was an abandon.
ed iron water tank thai had served
as a reservoir for the south side. II
was a so feet In diameter and 40 feet
high. was rooted over. a hole cut
In tho side for a door, shelves built
around it's cur ,ing sides and turned
Into a library. There during 1872
and 1873. $4,000 volumes received
from English contributors and else.
where were stored, and IN May 1874,
the library proper was opened.
Many Autographed Works.
The British contributions included
autographed works of Gladstone,
Herbert Spencer. John Staurt Mil,
Disraeii Carlyle. Kingsley, Huxley,
John Bright Lyeii. Freeman and Ros.
ettL Lady Trevelyan. sister OF Ma
,cauiay, autographed a set of his
works she had edited The British
government SEM 5000 volumes, in.
Guiding a calendar ,of state papers
with a copy OF the "Domesday B.ok."
Oxford University bound several
thousand volumes with its best bind
ing. and Cambridge University and
great British publishers contributed
literally. The British patent office
put the Chicago library on It's mailing
list and is stiil sending It's publica-
tons.
a number OF the autographed vol
umes have been preserved in a mem
oriai collection.
Out of this start the Chicago pub
lie library has grown TO a collection
of 100000 volumes. It's annual cir,
cuIation is 5000, 900 which places it
ahead Of any library in England.