State Library Victoria - history

Building A - Queen's Hall

Ground floor

• Hansen Hall
  • First opened 1864
  • Refurbished under new name 2019
  • Previously Palmer Hall named for James Palmer
    • Original Library Trustee and politician
• Front Foyer
  • Initially often referred to as the vestibule
• Keith Murdoch Gallery
  • First opened 1859
  • Redeveloped under current name 2001
  • Previously Monash Gallery for John Monash
    • World War 1 commander; civil engineer

Upper Levels

• Ian Potter Queens Hall. Fully Refurbished. Reopened December 2019
  • Originally named Queen's Reading Room and then Queen's Hall
  • 1914 Transferred to the Museum
  • 1975 Returned to Library as the Arts, Music and Performing Arts Library
  • Closed between 2003 and 2019

Building B - Dome

Opened 1913

• Level 1
  • Dome basement (book storage)
• Level 2
  • The Quad - redeveloped 2019
  • Formerly Trescowthick Information Centre ( March, 1997)
• Level 3
  • La Trobe Reading Room
  • Refurbished 1999-2003
• Levels 4-6
  • Dome Annulus exhibition spaces and viewing space
  • Formerly book storage
  • Additional floor added between 4 and 5
  • 2003 temporary floor removed

 

Buildings C, K, L, M, N - Courtyards

• C East Link 2003
• K Conversation Quarter
  • Initially referred to as North West Courtyard
  • 1996 - 1997 Temporary Information Centre
  • 1997 - 2003 Temporary location for the La Trobe Library
  • Helen Macpherson Smith Genealogy Courtyard (30 October 2003)
• L StartSpace opened 2020
  • Formerly Newspaper Reading Room (Opened May, 1998)
• M Create Quarter (2019)
  • Built as Arts Library opened September 2003
• M Upper Level - Study Space
  • Opened as Ian Potter Seminar Room 24 July 2003
• N Pauline Gandel Children's Courtyard (opened 2019)
  • Formerly Experimedia

Building D - Stawell Building

• Level 3 Cowen Gallery opened 28 November 2003
  • Originally Stawell Gallery (1893)
• North Rotunda 1940
• South Rotunda 1928
• 3 spaces Built as galleries for NGV
• Initially named for William Stawell one of the initial Library trustees; Chief Justice

Building E - Redmond Barry Reading Room

• Originally built in 1893 for Museum, closed 1997
• Named McCoy Hall after Frederick McCoy, long time museum director
• Reopened as the Redmond Barry Reading Room, December 2003

Building F

• .Russell Street Welcome Zone opened September 2018
  • Initially built for the Museum in 1906
  • Named Baldwin Spencer, anthropologist and Museum Director
  • Baldwin Spencer died in 1929 on a field trip to remote Tierra Del Fuego
  • Journal and magazine open access collection 2003-2018
• Upper Level (storage and workrooms)
  • Named for James Kershaw,  museum curator and then director

Building G - Bride

Named for Thomas Bride, Chief Librarian 1881-1895

• Built 1932
• Originally built for the Art Gallery and named McAllan Galleries
  • after benefactor, Richmond grocer  James McAllan
• Used by Museum after the Gallery moved out in 1968
• Incorporated into the Library 2003
  • Level 1 - Industrial kitchen, formerly Document Supply
  • Level 2 - Now Isabella Fraser Room event space
    • Named for first listed female staff member,
    • Formerly housed VICNET
  • Level 3- Initially NGV Print Room
    • Staff work area after 1997
    • Significantly renovated 2018

Building H - Armstrong Building

• Armstrong Building named for Edmund La Touche Armstrong Chief Librarian 1896-1925
  • Includes Village Roadshow Theatre; Conference Rooms and staff work spaces
• Originally built 1965 as the La Trobe Library to house and provide public access to the Australian collections
• North Link  (1913) connected the La Trobe Library with the Dome

Building J - Tulk Building

• Named for Augustus Tulk, first chief Librarian
• Ground floor built 1866 as North West Wing for the Intercolonial Exhibition
  • Used as Lending Library 1946-1971
  • Currently Mr Tulk Cafe
• Upper levels used by Industrial and Technological Museum after 1961
  • In 1970s used by Public Libraries Division
  • Later Library Finance department
  • Late 1990s VICNET
  • Currently Library staff work areas

Building O - Wheeler Centre

• Centre of Books, Writing and Ideas named for benefactors Tony and Maureen Wheeler
• Previously
  • Upper level opened 1886 as Barry Hall a reading room adjoining Queen's Hall
    • incorporated into the Museum 1914
  • Lower Level - exhibition space for Gallery

Building P & Q - North East & South East Wings

• Built as storage in 1992
• North East wing initially Newspapers, Maps, Pictures, Manuscripts, Rare Books staff

Building R - Pitt

• Purpose built as staff work area 1997
• Names for Ernest Roland Pitt,Chief Librarian 1931-1943

Building S - Pendulum Staircase

Pendulum Staircase had pendulum reaching from roof to bottom of stairs during the Museum's occupation of area until 1997

• Completed 1928

Building T - Bindon

Built 1928, initially Buvelot Gallery, part of NGV

• After NGV left in 1968Renamed Samuel Henry Bindon
  • politician, judge, trustee of Library, Museum and National Gallery of Victoria
• Top floor initially NGV print room
  • Named Thorpe Hall after NGV left in 1968
  • Now staff work area
• Level 2A Heritage Collections Reading Room

Building U - Victoria Gallery

Victoria Gallery, opened 2019, formerly La Trobe Gallery

• Originally built 1893 for NGV
• Part of the Museum 1968 to 1997
• Manuscripts staff area 2003 to 2018
• Named after Governor La Trobe

Building V - Newspapers and Family History Reading room

Opened as Newspapers and Family History Reading room, 2019

McArthur Gallery 1875

• Built as gallery for NGV
• Part of Museum 1968 to 1997
• Staff and Collection space for Rare Printed Collections 2003 to 2018

Building W - Swinburne

Swinburne Building 1895, currently Arts reading Room 2019

Named after George Swinburne long time trustee, engineer, politician

• Level 1
  • Temporary location of Lending Library 1892-1893
  • Newspaper Room 1908-1914
  • Lending Library storage 1908-1946
  • Currently staff work area
• Level 2A
  • Originally Grosvenor Gallery for exhibition of items from Grosvenor Gallery London
  • Then Buvelot Gallery for exhibition of  Louis Buvelot's works
  • Lending Library 1908 to 1946
  • Gallery 1946 to 1968
  • Museum 1968-1997
  • Pictures Collection and Staff area 2003-2018
• Level 3
  • National Gallery School and studios
  • Museum
  • 1993 to current, staff work area