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Physical Description

The Old Bathurst School of Arts Collection numbers approximately 2000 books or about 7% of the estimated 30,000 books held by the library in its heyday. The collection is currently stored in a compactus (accessed through another compactus) within the staff-only area of the Bathurst City Public library.

The nominated collection includes books dating from 1700 with predominantly nineteenth century non-fiction / reference texts offering an emphasis on Australiana, indicative of the earlier, educational role performed by School of Arts institutions. The collection is currently being increased again under a policy of returning books from the Bathurst City Library that had earlier been culled. These books tend to be mid twentieth century fiction.

The collection includes a useful variety of catalogues created at various periods throughout its history, that for example detail the titles held in 1899 (called the 'Main' collection) and those added between 1900 and 1907 (called the 'Supplementary' collection). A stocktake of the collection after culling from 1982 also details the titles held (although this was found not to be an entirely accurate record of book now on the shelves).

The collection contains a number of valuable and important items in their own right including:
1792 publication featuring scenes of old Sydney Town by "Captain Hunter".

Important supporting documents found within the collection:
Catalogue of the Bathurst Mechanic’s School of Arts 1899: A dictionary of Authors, Subjects and Classes.
Supplementary Catalogue of the Bathurst School of Arts for the Years 1899 to 1907 (inclusive) : Authors’ names and names of books in alphabetical order.
Original Bathurst School of Arts Minute Book (documenting the creation of the School of Arts and its library).
Ledger of periodicals, magazines and reviews bound into volume. Commencing in 1895, final entry appears to be 1915.
Stock Book No.3 Earliest entry is 1948. This book indicates the starting number for each section of the collection. Giving an indication of the size of the collection in the mid 1900s.
School of Arts Visitors Book 1899-1913.
Fees register (lists names of members of the Bathurst School of Arts).
At the front of the 1899 catalogue there is a section on the Rules of the Bathurst School of Arts Library. Within these rules there are sections headed 'Librarian', 'Books and Records', 'Stock list', 'Lost books', 'Fines' 'Worn-out Books' and 'New Books'. There is also a chapter on Library By-Laws. These rules and by-laws together with the remaining minute book provide us with a guide to the way the library operated the principles behind the library.

Classification and arrangement of collection
A-Travel &c.
B-Science
C-Biography
D-History
E-Poetry and Drama
F-Miscellaneous essays, Sports &c.
Ref Lib-Reference Library
(Source: Catalogue of the Bathurst Mechanic’s School of Arts, 1899.)

Within each section a running number was allocated as books were added to the system.

Modifications

The School of Arts library was reported as numbering some 19,746 volumes in the financial year of 1913-1914, with 28,277 loans recorded in that year (Cumberford, 2004). The collection in 1956 when acquired by Bathurst City Library was probably even larger than this, so the present collection represents trhe results of a culling undertaken by the Bathurst City Library during the 1950s.

Condition

The books are in good condition. The climactic conditions have worked to the benefit of the collection. The district does not have a high humidity and the air conditioning is kept on 24 hours a day resulting in the collection being maintained at a constant temperature. The library already has a pest control strategy operating. The area has poor lighting and is well away from natural light.
The Interim CMS advises that the coherence of the collection should be conserved and it should not be expanded with any further acquisitions, that none of its books should be made available for loan, and that items should only be provided to the public under supervision. The CMS recommends preservation measures such as de-acidification and housing under controlled environmental conditions to maximise its lifespan.

History

Aboriginal people and colonisation.
Aboriginal occupation of the Blue Mountains area dates back at least 12,000 years and appears to have intensified some 3000-4000 years ago. In pre-colonial times the area now known as Bathurst was inhabited by Aboriginal people of the Wiradjuri linguistic group. The clan associated with Bathurst occupied on a seasonal basis most of the Macquarie River area. They moved regularly in small groups but prefered the open land and used the waterways for a variety of food. There are numerous river flats where debris from recurrent camps accumulated over a long period. European settlement in this region after the first documented white expedition west of the Blue Mountains in 1813 was tentative because of resistance from Aboriginal people. There was some contact, witnessed by sporadic hostility and by the quantity of surviving artefacts manufactured by the Aborigines from European glass. By 1840 there was widespread dislocation of Aboriginal culture, aggravated after 1850 by the goldrush to the region (HO & DUAP, 1996, 88).

The Bathurst School of Arts
In 1855 the Bathurst School of Arts and Mechanic’s Institute was established, offering the beginnings of scientific and technical education in Bathurst (Greaves, 1961). A grant of land to the School of Arts resulted in premises being built by 1861 on the corner of Howick and William Streets on land adjoining the Church of England's All Saints Cathedral. It was a two storey building designed by local architect, M.H. Sadlier. A long-desired public hall was completed in 1874, helping boost the membership to 324 people (Bialowas, 2000, 35, 39-40).

During the 1870s the School of Arts received an annual grant from the Government on the understanding that ‘the institution should tend to the intellectual advancement of the people’. Early accounts of the lectures and discussions suggest that entertainments were many and varied, including: lectures, tea-drinkings, readings, soirees, bazaars, an occasional circus, ‘biological-phenomena’, mesmerism, and phrenology. The courses of lectures were on occasion ambitious and expensive (Greaves, 1961).

In 1873 the committee of the School of Arts advocated the opening of a working-man’s college. For some years during the early 1880s, funds made available by the Government for technical training were controlled by the School of Arts, but by the late 1880s the management of technical education was transferred from the School of Arts committee to a board appointed by the NSW Government (Greaves, 1961). In 1889 the NSW Department of Education became responsible for such education and in 1894 the School of Arts sold its unused land in William Street to the Department of Public Instruction for the construction of a college. The college in William Street, designed by the Colonia Architect W.L. Vernon, was completed in 1898 (Bialowas, 2000,36).

The Bathurst School of Arts Library Collection
The Old Bathurst School of Arts Library Collection was probably begun soon after the establishment of the Bathurst School of Arts in 1855. In the financial year 1913-1914, the School of Arts Library Collection was measured at nearly 20,000 volumes (Cumerford, 2004). In the 1940s at least the collection was still housed on the first floor of the 1862 School of Arts building on the corner of William and Howick Streets (Bialowas, 2000). Bathurst City Council acquired the collection in 1956 when it took over the Old School of Arts building. The estimated 2000 books now held in this collection were probably separated out from the Bathurst City Library’s general holdings soon after acquisition, and have stored together away from public access. They have never been available for lending, although they has been viewed by members of the public from time to time under supervision (Cumberford, 2004).

Internet links

Webpage	Source
Bathurst Old School of Arts Library Collection	Attraction Homepage

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