About the Library
On the last day of my recent trip to England and Scotland, I spent several productive hours in the reading room of the Guildhall Library in London. It is one of my favorite places for research and browsing.

Origins of the library go back to 1425 when, thanks to the generosity of Richard Whittington and others, the first structure was built next to the Guildhall Chapel. In about 1550, during the reign of the boy-king Edward VI, the Duke of Somerset, principal leader of the government, moved the books to his own home. The library did not disappear but not until the 1800s was it once again housed in its own building. Part of the collection was lost due to German bombing in World War II. Despite these ups and downs, the Guildhall Library today houses a remarkable collection of books, manuscripts, maps, and illustrations.

Much of the library is hidden from view, underground. If a book you wish to consult is not on open shelves it must be brought to the reading room. This does not take long. Simply find a seat, note the table number, complete a request slip, and leave it at the desk. Guildhall Library has an Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC), which makes it easy to find useful books either on site or in advance of a visit.

Hours are excellent--from 9:30 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. every day but Sunday. Exceptions are holidays and long weekends (shut both the Saturday and the Monday).

What to Do at the Library
Every visit involves time working in the main reading room. I usually arrive with a list of books to find on the shelves or request, and sometimes I spend time consulting the collection of Parliamentary Papers or the online index and images of the Times newspaper.

On previous visits I have worked not only in the main reading room but also in the manuscripts area, searching London probate documents and records of city guilds. Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section is the local record office for the City of London, apart from the archives of the Corporation of London, which are found at the Corporation of London Record Office nearby. Among the records are those of the Diocese of London, St. Paul's Cathedral, about 80 livery companies, the stock exchange, Lloyd's of London, and other insurance companies.

I have never made adequate use of the collection of prints, maps, and drawings. Fortunately anyone can consult this remarkable collection through two websites, the Library's own “Collage” portal and a new site about the city and its photographers, photoLondon.

Conclusion
In addition to the breadth of the collections, I like the atmosphere at the Guildhall Library--quiet and rarely busy, helpful and courteous staff, and comfortable temperature any time of year.

This is not a lending library, but it is a library for easy access. The main reading room's large work tables, all with comfortable chairs, are ringed by bookshelves against the walls and computer terminals (on one side). It is a deposit library and receives a copy of any book published in the UK. Here you can find books on the most amazing array of topics. Most recently I consulted London directories, books on the history of the theater, and books on the building of British army barracks.

I often talk to people who are going to the U.K. but only to London or only to a limited area not anywhere near the origins of their ancestors. Most visitors have a little time in London and some time for research. Guildhall Library is worth a visit, even a short one, if you plan ahead. Check it out online, in particular read about their records and search the catalog. Aids to finding some of their records are beginning to appear online at the “Access to Archives” site, and you can learn about all of this within the library's website.

Guildhall Library and Corporation of London Record Office websites are best reached from the Libraries, Archives, Museums, and Galleries page of the Corporation of London. Access to Archives can be reached at www.a2a.org.uk

For more information on “Access to Archives,” see Sherry's article in the July 2002 issue of Genealogical Computing.

Sherry Irvine, CGRS, FSA (Scot) is an author, teacher, and lecturer specializing in English and Scottish family history. She is the author of Your English Ancestry (2nd ed, 1998) and Your Scottish Ancestry (1997), and she is a regular contributor to several journals including Genealogical Computing. Since 1996, she has been a study tour leader, course coordinator, and instructor for the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University. She teaches online for the family history program of Vermont College and has lectured at conferences in Canada, the United States, and Australia. She is past president of the Association of Professional Genealogists.

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