Free and Public: Andrew Carnegie and the Libraries of Wales

A study of historic Welsh libraries and their entanglement with the movement for free public libraries and the philanthropic vision of Andrew Carnegie.

What can a library tell us about history? In the Edwardian Age, Andrew Carnegie, the richest man in the world, undertook an effort to build a number of libraries in Wales and Great Britain. The Carnegie buildings have never been fully recorded, and some are in critical condition today. To memorialize them, this book illustrates the social, cultural, and architectural significance of the historic libraries that formed the heart of towns and industrial communities across Wales. The book also traces the history of the free and public library system from the first Public Libraries Act of 1850 to the present day, highlighting Carnegie’s extraordinary philanthropic vision and legacy in the process.