Funding problems

In the United States, among other countries, libraries in financially-strapped communities compete with other public institutions such as police, firefighters, schools, and health care.

Many communities are closing down or reducing the capability of their library systems, at the same time balancing their budgets. Jackson County, Oregon (US), closed its entire 15-branch library system on April 6, 2007, for an indefinite period. This example of a funding problem followed the failure to pass of a bond measure and cessation of federal funding for counties with dwindling timber revenue, in a state with no sales tax[3][4]. In December 2004, Salinas, California almost became the first city in the United States to completely close down its entire library system. A tax increase passed by the voters in November 2005 allowed the libraries to open, but hours remain limited.^[8]The American Library Association says media reports it has compiled in 2004 showed some $162 million in funding cuts to libraries nationwide.^[9].

Survey data suggests the public values free public libraries. A Public Agenda survey in 2006 reported 84 percent of the public said maintaining free library services should be a top priority for their local library. But the survey also found the public was mostly unaware of financial difficulties facing their libraries. The survey did not ask those surveyed whether they valued free library services more than other specific services, such as firefighting.^[10]

In various cost-benefit studies libraries continue to provide an exceptional return on the dollar. ^[11]

Famous libraries

Some of the greatest libraries in the world are research libraries. The most famous ones include The Humanities and Social Sciences Library of the New York Public Library in New York City, the Russian National Library in St Petersburg, the British Library in London, Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris, and the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C..

• Assurbanipal's library at Nineveh was created between years 669 - 631 BC

• Egypt's Library of Alexandria (founded in 3rd century BC) and modern Bibliotheca Alexandrina

• Baghdad's House of Wisdom in 8th century AD

• Islamic Spain's library of Cordoba in 9th century

• Ambrosian Library in Milan opened to the public, December 8, 1609.

• Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BNF) in Paris, 1720.

• Boston Public Library in Boston, 1826.

• Bodleian Library at University of Oxford 1602, books collection begin around 1252.

• British Library in London created in 1973 by the British Library Act of 1972.

• British Library of Political and Economic Science in London, 1896.

• Butler Library at Columbia University, 1934

• Cambridge University Library at University of Cambridge, 1931.

• Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, 1895.

• Carolina Rediviva at Uppsala University, 1841

• Dutch Royal Library in The Hague, 1798

• The European Library, 2004

• Firestone Library at Princeton University, 1948

• Fisher Library at the University of Sydney (largest in the Southern Hemisphere), 1908

• Franklin Public Library in Franklin, Massachusetts (the first public library in the U.S.; original books donated by Benjamin Franklin in 1731)

• Free Library of Philadelphia in Philadelphia established February 18, 1891.

• Garrison Library in Gibraltar, 1793.

• Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University, 1924, probably the largest single-building university library in the world.

• House of Commons Library, Westminster, London. Established 1818.

• Jenkins Law Library in Philadelphia founded 1802.

• Jewish National and University Library in Jerusalem, Israel, 1892.

• John Rylands Library in Manchester 1972.

• Leiden University Library at Leiden University in Leiden began at 1575 with confiscated monastery books. Officially open in October 31, 1587.

• Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. 1800.

• Library of Sir Thomas Browne, 1711

• Mitchell Library in Glasgow (Europe's largest public reference library)

• National Library of Belarus in Minsk, 2006.

• National Library of Australia in Canberra, Australia

• National Library of Ireland, Dublin

• New York Public Library in New York

• Osler Library of the History of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

• Sassanid's ancient Library of Gondishapur around 489.

• National Library of Iran, 1937.

• Powell Library at UCLA, part of the UCLA Library.

• Russian State Library in Moscow, 1862.

• Royal Library in Copenhagen, 1793.

• Seattle Central Library

• Staatsbibliothek in Berlin

• State Library of Victoria in Melbourne

• Sterling Memorial Library at Yale University, 1931.

• Vatican Library in Vatican City, 1448 (but existed before).

• Widener Library at Harvard University (Harvard University Library including all branches has the largest academic collection overall.)

• The St. Phillips Church Parsonage Provincial Library, established in 1698 in Charleston, South Carolina, was the first public lending library in the American Colonies. See also Benjamin Franklin's free public library in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

• Boston Public Library, an early public lending library in America, was established in 1848.

• Haskell Free Library and Opera House, which straddles the Canada-US border.

• St. Marys Church, Reigate, Surrey houses the first public lending library in England. Opened 14 March 1701.

Some libraries devoted to a single subject:

• Chess libraries

• Esperanto libraries

• Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, the world's largest genealogy library.

For more extensive lists, see

• List of libraries that are the subject of a Wikipedia article

• List of libraries

• List of national libraries