Blog

1. 

   Calendar Girls… and Boys

   Whilst it is true that the collections at Chetham’s were built up in a very deliberate, conscious manner, with each book being selected by governors and librarians because it fulfilled...

   3rd August 2016 • Read more

2. 

   Fashionable Amusements

   One of our wonderful Manchester scrapbooks is always referred to as ‘Cambrics’ – a rather curious name which simply describes the original fabric which covered the scrapbook. Within the book...

   21st July 2016 • Read more

3. 

   The Ballad of Chetham’s Library

   We are delighted to announce we have recently been successful in our application to the Arts Council’s Designation Development Fund. The money we will receive means we can now digitise...

   13th July 2016 • Read more

4. 

   Thursday Lates

   We’re open again this Thursday until 8.30… come along and enjoy wandering through the medieval buildings in the early evening light, see some books, relax in the Library. We’d love...

   5th July 2016 • Read more

5. 

   Waste Not Want Not

   The collection of John Byrom, which we acquired in 1870 from a descendant of the poet,  is especially interesting for a number of reasons. Firstly, it contains some of the...

   28th June 2016 • Read more

6. 

   Dr. Ferriar or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and See Ghosts

   We are very pleased to announce a new acquisition, John Ferriar’s An essay towards a theory of apparitions (1813), purchased from one of our favourite bookshops, Ken Spelman of York....

   21st June 2016 • Read more

7. 

   Hulme-orous Photos

   These wonderful pictures of Hulme (mainly from around the 1970s) have been generously donated by the legendary Terry Wyke, Senior Lecturer in History at Manchester Metropolitan University.      ...

   14th June 2016 • Read more

8. 

   Two Libraries and an Orrery…

   A guest blog by Patti Collins, Chetham’s Library Volunteer As a new Room Guide at the National Trust’s Dunham Massey Hall, I’ve been struck by the enthusiasm which many visitors...

   7th June 2016 • Read more

9. 

   Second city of the Empire

   We have just acquired a copy of the The Graphic thanks to our colleague Ian Mayer at Chetham’s School of Music. The Graphic was a British weekly illustrated newspaper, first...

   31st May 2016 • Read more

10. 

    Novel Experiences of Horses’ Heads – the Origins of the Palatine Building

    The Palatine Building demolition continues apace. It won’t be long until it’s gone and many more Mancunians will be treated to a view of our smiley faces waving to them...

    24th May 2016 • Read more