Early Libraries in New Zealand The establishment of libraries in New Zealand appears to date back to 1842 when a Mechanics' Institute and Library was established at Auckland. Similar institutions followed in other parts of the country and by 1874 there were 161 libraries, mechanics' institutes and other literary and scientific institutes in the colony. Their facilities were available to members who were charged a subscription. Provision was made for the establishment of public libraries as early as 1869 with the passing of the Public Libraries Act. This Act followed the English model, and provided local bodies with the power to establish and manage libraries and levy a library rate. The Act also stipulated that entry to the library would be free of charge. Ten years after the Act came into force, the first public library was established at Auckland. By 1926, there were well over four hundred public libraries in the country. Early Library Service at Whangarei During the 1860s the fledgling settlement of Whangarei developed with the subdivision of several large properties into residential sites. As a harbourside settlement, the town relied on trade linked to the flax and kauri gum industries, as well as farming. One of Whangarei's early settlers was Robert Reyburn, who established a library in a shipping office at the waterfront in the 1860s. From these small beginnings the library expanded and occupied a succession of private and commercial premises in the town. Funds from a musical society were put towards the purchase of more books, but unfortunately it appears that the library stock was later destroyed by fire. In March 1871, the Whangarei Literary Institute was formed by a group of interested locals and Robert Reyburn was appointed librarian. By the mid 1870 the European population of the township had grown to around 500, and the settlement boasted a post office, school, and several churches and shops. From this time the town developed rapidly and in 1876 the citizens elected the first Whangarei County Council. On 5 April 1897, responsibility for the literary institute was handed over to the newly formed Whangarei Borough Council. Around the turn of the twentieth century, a substantial bequest from a Mr Gordon Cummings allowed the council to rehouse the library in Whangarei County Council building. It remained there until 1912, when it was relocated to the Borough Council building. Relying more on farming following the decline of the extractive industries, the population of Whangarei Borough increased heavily from 1429 in 1901 to 7152 in 1936, demonstrating Whangarei's position as the capital and premier settlement of Northland. As early as 1921 the accommodation at the library was fully utilized, and by 1928 the situation had become critical. Membership had doubled since 1921 and there were now nearly 900 library subscribers. The library was forced to refuse some valuable donations of books for lack of space. The council had plans drawn up by a local architect, Mr A. Morgan, for a single-storey extension to the Municipal buildings. However the issue of finance appears to have stalled proceedings. By 1933 the council had abandoned the plan of a single-storey addition and were considering erecting a two-storey building that would house the library, museum and an art gallery. The council approached the Local Government Loans Board for approval of a loan to finance the project. However, the prevailing economic climate during the Great Depression meant that money was tight and the board cautioned against such extravagance. Council's deliberations on the matter continued. The New Whangarei Library, 1936 In late 1934 the council secured a site for the new library on Rust Avenue. This was added to the following year with the purchase of an adjoining piece of land. In January 1935 local architect A.P. Morgan and Auckland architect Horace Massey were selected to design the new library by a subcommittee of council consisting of Councillors Morrish, Barclay and Morrison. The following month the council resolved to approach the Local Government Loans Board for permission to borrow £7730 for the erection of the new library. The ratepayers of Whangarei also approved the loan. In November the council raised the necessary money, and the following month tenders were called for the new building. The lowest of the three tenders received, that of Kemp & Rennie for £7100, was accepted and soon work was underway. In February 1936, Mr Tudehope was appointed clerk of works for the project. Erection of the building was assisted by a subsidy from the Unemployment Board. The Board provided relief to provide jobs for the unemployed during the Depression, and by 1935 this was extended to include unskilled and other workers. With the building underway, the council and library committee turned their attention to arranging an opening ceremony. The Governor General was invited to open the building, but was unable to attend. The Prime Minister was also approached but other commitments precluded his involvement. The opening ceremony was eventually planned for 12 November 1936 with Mr Frank W. Reed officially opening the building with a gold key. Frank Reed had a strong connection with the library. He had come to Whangarei from England with his family in 1887. The family settled at Parahaki near Whangarei. The family had little money and survived by digging kauri gum and farming a few acres of land. Reed trained as a chemist and worked in Whangarei until his retirement in 1926. He devoted the rest of his life to the study of the works of Alexandre Dumas. He became an international authority on this subject and was recognised by the French government for his work, receiving their two highest honours for the study of literature. Reed amassed a collection of over 3000 books, including early bibles and other rare books. He gifted 1200 of his books to the Whangarei library and a larger collection went to the Auckland Public Library. Reed also played an important role in the planning and management of the library serving on the Library Committee in the 1930s. The design for the Whangarei library included a room specially designated to house the Reed collection, to be known as the Reed Room. This room was reused for other purposes after the transfer of the Reed collection to the new Auckland Public Library in 1972, where new temperature and humidity controls ensured that the books would remain in good condition. Reed died in 1953. Reed's brother, Alfred (later Sir Alfred), founded the successful publishing firm of A.H. Reed (later A.H. & A.W. Reed), gifting a large collection of books to the Dunedin Public Library where it was housed in a special room, also known as the Reed Room. After the death of Frank Reed, Alfred maintained a supportive connection with the Whangarei Library. Another person who had an important role to play in the development of the new library was Councillor A. Brainsby, chairman of the Whangarei Library Committee. Brainsby had been Chair of the Library Committee since at least 1928, and sat on the library sub-committee of Council, which dealt directly with the architect. He spoke at the opening ceremony along with the Whangarei Mayor, Mr W. Jones; Member of Parliament for Marsden, Mr J.G. Barclay; Mayor of Auckland, Ernest Davis; Mayor of Dargaville, Francis Jones; Chairman of the Whangarei County Council, J.A.S. Mackay and Auckland's Chief Librarian, John Barr. The guests were entertained by the Municipal Silver Band. The building itself was hailed by the Northern Advocate as 'one of the most modern and artistic buildings of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.' It featured a lending library, and separate rooms for the children's department, reference collection and newspaper department, which had separate entrance from Cafler Avenue. There was also a students' room, librarians' office, committee room and workshop as well as the Reed Room. The interior was designed to admit the future addition of galleries to extend the shelf space. Its colour scheme employed tones of warm buff, reddish brown and cool grey-green. The exterior was in brick with pressed stone dressings to the windows and doors. The doors themselves featured a carved monogram of the Whangarei Borough Council, as well as decoration symbolic of literature, law, industry and commerce. The library was planned and built soon after the publication of a report on New Zealand Libraries written by Ralph Munn, director of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, and John Barr, chief librarian of the Auckland Public Libraries. In 1932 Barr had received a scholarship to travel to the United States to study library practice. The report that he co-wrote with Munn two years later was a landmark document, which influenced the future direction of library development in this country. Amongst the criticisms included in the report were the charging of membership subscriptions and the inadequacy of services for children. It is significant that the new Whangarei library included a substantial children's room. Barr attended the opening of the library and was reported to have said that 'for its size the Whangarei Library is as good a building as any I saw in the United States'. The library was one of only a few New Zealand libraries with a substantial children's section, and its provision of improved services can be seen as a boost to community morale after many years of economic depression. In 1938 the excellent design of the library was recognised by the New Zealand Institute of Architects, which awarded the architects a gold medal. However, despite the impressive design, the building soon ran into problems when the bricks were found to be porous and the ventilation inadequate. Remedial work was subsequently carried out to resolve these difficulties. Later developments A sharp increase in membership of the library occurred in 1947, following a decision to remove subscription charges for library members. This was part of a nationwide move toward free membership of public libraries. The 1950s saw new events held in the library. In 1954 the Whangarei library took part in the nationwide children's book week, which included readings from children's books from America and Japan. In 1956, patrons of the library were enjoying regular lunch-hour concerts in the library. Civic pride in the building was demonstrated with the installation of floodlighting in 1954. The original light fittings were moved to the end of Rust Avenue. Two park benches were donated by T. Hetherington to the Municipal Library and the citizens of Whangarei in 1958. These were installed outside the library on Rust Avenue, where they remain today. In September 1962, the library building was described as 'unsatisfactory' by the librarian Mr B.K. Keon. Library membership had grown to 8702, nearly nine times the number of subscribers at the time that the building was opened. In 1963, plans were drawn up by architect C.F. Corne for extensions to the rear of the library. The following year an 88 square m. (950 square foot) extension was built, providing a new workroom. Further alterations were made in 1965 with the removal of internal partitions and shifting of the issues desk. In 1968 the revolving doors inside the main entrance of the library were removed. These were felt to be unsafe, inconvenient and expensive to maintain. In February 1971 the library building was lit with coloured lights in celebration of the centenary of the formation of the Whangarei Literary Institute. A students essay competition judged by publisher A.H. Reed was also part of the centennial celebrations. As early as 1970 plans for major additions to the building had been drawn up but these were set aside due to lack of funds. The erection of a mezzanine gallery down one side of the building in 1974 provided much needed extra shelf space. In 1980 a more extensive mezzanine floor was installed but still more space was required. In the early 1980s new plans were prepared for extensive alterations at the rear of the building. The Auckland firm Civil & Civic NZ Ltd were awarded the contract to build the library extensions in 1982. The new wing would be two stories in height, and provided not only additional library accommodation but also an art gallery run by the Northland Society of Arts. The bold design by architect Peter McNaught was constructed using precast concrete panels, and featured a curved wall on the Cafler Avenue side. In 1989 the upstairs portion of the internal wall at the rear of the main room was removed. By the late 1990s, space was again at a premium and plans were drawn up for a three-stage programme of alterations and additions. Council is still discussing plans for improving the central library facilities. The library has received much public support over the years and many generous gifts. In recognition of F.W. Reed's contribution to the library a framed photograph and biography hangs inside the building today. Other gifts include a collection of art books given by New Zealand novelist Jane Mander. The Whangarei Central Library is now the key library in a network of three libraries in Whangarei City and it has a close relationship with ten other community libraries in the surrounding area.

Context The Whangarei Central Library is located to the west of the main centre of Whangarei. Occupying flat ground close to the main trunk railway line, it faces onto Rust Avenue and is bounded by Lovers Lane to the west. The building is part of a larger civic complex, with council offices and a cultural centre housed occupying separate structures to the rear. The 1936 building retains its street presence and original character in spite of 1980s additions to the southwest, assisted by its corner location and the fact that the surrounding area is comparatively open. Exterior The library, as constructed in 1936, is in Stripped Classical architectural style, but reflects influences from other styles popular at that time, including Art Deco. The building is a single-storey concrete structure with a brick exterior, and contains pressed stone surrounds to its windows and doors. Roof trusses are back-braced with angle iron steel, and walls are tied across at subfloor level to withstand earthquakes. The front (northeastern) façade is symmetrical, and includes a projecting central entry element with decorative carved front doors within a minor recess. These incorporate the Whangarei Borough crest, and a book and torches motif that symbolises learning. Externally, this recess is both surrounded by a decorative frieze incorporating the word 'Library' and surmounted by a stylised square pediment. Each side of the entry element there is a wing, with three steel windows of classical proportions. On either side and above each of these windows is a decorative frieze, terminating at the projecting window sills. The original steps remain, with the addition of a disabled access ramp on the northern part of the front façade. The ramp is detached from the building except where it joins the steps, so that it does not interfere with the original front wall. Although the fenestration and its surrounding decorative elements have an ornamental character, the building overall is uncompromising in its 'stripped back' appearance, with a constant parapet line rather than a stepped one. This, however, terminates with a plain band avoiding any classical references normally associated with Stripped Classical style. The pitched roof is hidden below the parapet from street level. While the overall silhouette of the front of the building could be considered influenced by the Modern Movement or Art Deco architecture, the entry element has a suggestion of Mayan architecture, and its interpretations in buildings of the 1930s. The book and torches motif is repeated in the casting for the subfloor ventilation grilles. Much of the rear (southwestern) part of the original building is now enclosed by later additions. Several of the original rear window apertures may be seen in what is now the middle of the building, and some of the original 'external' doors remain. Still evident on the southeastern side of the building is a section of the original building, which is also symmetrical. This has a parapet at the same level of the front façade and originally fronted the Newspaper Room, which had its own entrance. The central entrance is recessed from the face of the building, and has carved timber doors, and a fanlight above. Above this is an isolated frieze element identifying the entrance, again with the word 'Library'. Either side of this is a window, designed to match those on the front façade. On the northwestern side of the building, the level of the parapet is maintained and two windows have been installed to match the windows on the front façade. Further west, however, the parapet steps down significantly to accommodate an extension constructed in 1964, which infilled an earlier set-back arrangement. The extension was built to accommodate an enlargement of the original workroom in a broadly similar style, and was also erected with brick facing. Its different parapet height and window proportions distinguish it as a separate build, although the contrast is relieved by a judiciously placed fence. Interior Internally, the main rooms and their finishes (such as the Art Deco fibrous plaster ceilings) remain intact, despite the installation of a partial mezzanine, with modern detailing. This mezzanine was part of the original architects' intentions, though its detailing is more modern than they would have envisaged. The Art Deco lighting has been replaced with fluorescent lighting and the original shelving stacks have been largely replaced, though the mounts and supports for the original bookshelves remain visible in several places. The original laylight ceiling has had the glazing replaced with ceiling panels, but its architectural structure remains apparent.