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Main hall, Connemara Public Library, Chennai. Photo: Jm.kaarthik, CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Connemara_Public_Library,_Chennai-8.jpgDownload 1920px
Connemara Public Library
Egmore, Chennai, India, Opened 1896; founded 1890
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The record
Worth knowing
Connemara Public Library, worth knowing: A former employee told The Hindu the old building has 140 wooden chairs of the period with animals carved on the armrests.
Connemara Public Library, worth knowing: Connemara became a UNESCO Information Centre in 1955 and a depository for Asian Development Bank publications in 1992.
Connemara Public Library, worth knowing: Every leaf of the rare books in the old building is chiffon-laminated to protect it from age.
Connemara Public Library, worth knowing: The library once had a 200-foot tower, the tallest structure in Madras at the time. It was pulled down in March 1897 because it was unsafe.
Connemara Public Library, worth knowing: The museum next door started the first zoo in Madras in 1855, and a year later it held over 300 animals, birds and reptiles.
Connemara Public Library, worth knowing: The site was once the Pantheon, also known as the Public Rooms or Assembly Rooms, where the elite of the city met. In 1821 it was sold to E.S. Moorat, an Armenian merchant, who sold it back to the Government in 1830 for Rs 28,000.
Location
Connemara Public Library, location: The museum moved to The Pantheon in 1854
Built
Connemara Public Library, built: Foundation laid by Lord Connemara on 22 March 1890
Architect
Connemara Public Library, architect: Madras Musings: building credited to Namberumal Chetty, interior flourishes by Henry Irwin
Connemara Public Library, architect: The Hindu: designed by H Irving, consulting architect to the Government of Madras, in Indo-Saracenic style
Size
Connemara Public Library, size: Heritage building measures 20,000 sq ft
Volumes
Connemara Public Library, volumes: Over 600,000 books (Wikipedia)
Collection
Connemara Public Library, collection: Old building houses a rare collection of over one lakh books
Connemara Public Library, collection: Rare items include a Bible published in 1608 and Photographic Views in Madura published in 1858
What remains
Connemara Public Library, what remains: Reading room restored 2004-7
Status today
Connemara Public Library, status today: Became the state central library in 1948 under the Madras Public Libraries Act 1948; in 1981 designated one of four national depository libraries
What happened here
1890Connemara Public Library, founded, 1890: Foundation laid by Lord Connemara, 22 March 1890
1896Connemara Public Library, opened, 1896: Formally opened (5 Dec 1896)
1948Connemara Public Library, founded, 1948: Becomes the state central library
1973Connemara Public Library, built, 1973: New building added to the library
2004Connemara Public Library, rebuilt, 2004: Old reading room restored, 2004-7
Photographs

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Ceiling of the Connemara Public Library, Chennai. Photo: Dr. Narayanan Hariharan, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CONNEMARA_PUBLIC_LIBRARY_01.jpgDownload 1920px

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Reading hall, Connemara Public Library, Chennai. Photo: Dr. Narayanan Hariharan, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CONNEMARA_PUBLIC_LIBRARY_02.jpgDownload 1920px

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Stained glass at Connemara Public Library. Photo: Dr. Narayanan Hariharan, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CONNEMARA_PUBLIC_LIBRARY_04.jpgDownload 1920px

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Entrance of the Connemara Public Library, Egmore, Chennai. Photo: Yercaud-elango, CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Connemara_Library-1-Egmore-chennai-India.jpgDownload 1920px

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Name board and carved wall at the Connemara Public Library, Chennai. Photo: Manivinoth, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Connemara_Public_Library_Chennai.jpgDownload 1920px
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connemara_Public_Library
- http://www.madrasmusings.com/Vol%2020%20No%203/museum-library-and-theatre.html
- https://www.thehindu.com/society/this-world-book-day-walk-the-alleys-of-centuries-old-connemara-public-library/article23645555.ece
- https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/heritage-building-at-connemara-library-undergoing-renovation/article29308940.ece
- https://culture.gov.in/offering/grantee-bodies/connemara-public-library-cpl-chennai
- https://www.chennaimuseum.org/draft/history/history.htm