The History of the Library

Practically every town has a library in it. They come in all sizes and shapes. Libraries can be as big as a football stadium or as small as a one person room. So different, yet all come from the same history.

What we think of libraries today is not how they always have been. Libraries were not always for public access. Before Alexander the Great created his large empire, libraries were mainly in the private homes of wealthy scholars and intellects. A few governments might have small collections, but the majority was owned by those that wanted to learn more. Alexander’s descendants changed all that.

The great city of Alexandria was hoped to be the grandest in all the world. Ruled by Ptolemys, a library was built that was like nothing the world had ever seen. The goal was to have all writings in the world brought to the Great Library of Alexandria and be translated into Greek. Other civilizations were asked to make contributions willing or by deception to increase the number of scrolls the library held. The last estimate before the Romans destroyed the library was around 750,000 pieces of literature. Rumor has it that some of the scrolls were transported to Rome before the complete destruction of the Great Library. Nothing has been proven as of yet.

The fate of the library was rather precarious at this point in history. Many scholars still had their own private libraries. A few public ones existed on a much smaller scale than the Great Library. As the Roman Empire began spreading out, what would become of the library? Rome took up the mantle that Alexander’s Empire had begun and created public libraries. Access was generally limited to scholars and wealthy patrons. Yet, all things must come to an end. The Roman Empire was not destined to last forever.

As the Roman Empire collapsed, the library almost vanished completely. It turns out that it was the Christian monasteries that saved many pieces of literature and carried on the tradition of the library. As literacy was still not very common, libraries were mainly visited by church officials who could read and write. It was the Renaissance that brought the libraries back out into the public sector.

As education began to grow during the Renaissance, so did the library. Private libraries exploded as the wealthy became interested in the new surge of learning. Universities were built with their own libraries. Learning and literacy expanded. Libraries became centers of education.

From then one, libraries have flourished. Each time the fate of the library was in the balance, it was saved. The Romans and the monasteries were crucial in keeping books alive. They brought us the library we know today.

The next time you enter a library pause and look around. What you see before you is as old as Ancient Greece. The Great Library forged the path for the shelves of books before you. The Romans made sure that learning was available to you. The Christian monks guaranteed that you could still read Plato and Aristotle. The Renaissance made libraries a part of every learning environment. The library you stand in is rich in history.