FROM 1938 Mittagong Public School occupied a new two-storey building in Pioneer St.
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Prior to that the school was located in Queen St, in a 'colonial' style stone structure originally built in 1877 and extended several times with additional classrooms.
During the Second World War, the empty building was at times used by the military forces for various purposes.
At a local public meeting organised in 1944 by Miss Winifred West, a Children's Library Movement was formed to operate a library in the building. An appeal was launched for support from local citizens and organisations and the building was speedily renovated and stocked. With Miss Cohoe as first librarian, it opened on September 27, 1944.
A month later the library had 259 members aged from five to 16, with 98 enrolled in a story class, aged from three upwards. Members numbered 419 in early 1946 and that year dress-making classes and craft activities commenced. In 1948 there were 1767 books in stock. From 1950 the arts and craft activities declined and the library became exclusively bibliographic.
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The community-run library survived fluctuating fortunes and the advent of television to serve the children of Mittagong faithfully until a decision was taken in 1977 to make it the Mittagong branch of a new district library service.
A conference in May 1973 between Bowral, Mittagong and Wingecarribee (Moss Vale) Councils opened the way for the formation of a Berrima District Library Service. Bowral and Wingecarribee Councils already had library facilities, and Mittagong Shire was prepared to adopt the Library Act, levy a special rate to produce $6,000 annually, and to spend $30,000 on book stock and $11,000 on facilities. On the recommendation of the conference, the councils agreed that a district library be formed, and this was fully established by 1977.
THE children's library in Mittagong, built as a school in 1877, was extensively renovated in its centenary year of 1977. The charming, heritage sandstone building became home for the Mittagong branch of the district library service. The existing adult library was moved in to join the children's library. The Mittagong adult library, which had long been run by a School of Arts committee, was relocated from the Mittagong Shire Council Chambers building, now home to the Historical Society and the Playhouse.
Mittagong's School of Arts had opened in February 1886. It attracted 79 members during that year and a debating club was formed. At first a cottage was used for the library. Some years later A W Tooth purchased land at the corner of Bowral Road and Main Street and handed it to the School of Arts for a building which was completed the following year. By 1912 a hall was built at its rear.
In 1954 the School of Arts library was moved to temporary premises while renovations and extensions took place to create a building that incorporated the original two-storey School of Arts building and the Hall into a larger complex, dressed in sandstone, to be a new Mittagong Shire Council building.
School of Arts institutes had also existed in Bowral and Moss Vale from the 1880s, functioning as private lending libraries and public meeting places. The libraries were operated by committees until taken over by councils and brought under the Municipal Library Act - Bowral and Moss Vale in the mid 1940s, Mittagong in 1977. Children's libraries also operated in each of the towns from the early days, established by church, school or community groups, and these were also integrated into the council library system. When the Wingecarribee Shire Council was formed in 1981 by the amalgamation of Bowral Municipality, Mittagong Shire and the former Wingecarribee (Moss Vale) Shire Councils, the library services in each town, having not long before been formed into a Shire library service, became the Wingecarribee Public Library and a mobile library was established.
In 1999 Bowral Central Library was built for the Wingecarribee Library Service to house an administration section and major reference works as well as a town library, and the Moss Vale and Mittagong branch libraries continued to provide for the needs of people in each town and surrounding areas.
The card catalogue system was used until 1987 when all three Shire libraries became computerised and typed card catalogues became obsolete.
Mittagong Library was extensively refurbished in 2003. Paint was sandblasted from the beautiful internal sandstone walls. The library layout was reconfigured with new carpets, blinds and shelving installed.
The solid sandstone former public school building, a local historic landmark, is still very much in use.
This article compiled by PHILIP MORTON is sourced from the archives of Berrima District Historical & Family History Society, Bowral Rd, Mittagong. Phone 4872 2169.
Email bdhsarchives@gmail.com.
Web: berrimadistricthistoricalsociety.org.au
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