Geoffrey Alley was an All Black lock anda farmer, and then became involved in adult education and library services. He became New Zealand’s first national librarian.
Geoffrey Alley left school in 1921, to manage a Southland farm. During this time his aptitude for rugby flourished, and in 1926 he was selected for the All Black tour of Australia, and then again for the 1928 tour of South Africa. It was in the scrum that his imposing physical strength proved valuable.
Report on meeting of New Zealand's first public library from New Zealand Gazette and Wellington Spectator, 16 April 1842. The first librarian, Dr Frederick Knox is thanked for his work.
In 1992 the New Zealand Library Association organised a campaign in association with the Friends of National Radio (Inc) called the ‘Great New Zealand Television Turn-Off’.
The Munn Barr report, officially titled New Zealand Libraries: a survey of conditions and suggestions for their improvement, was a seminal publication in the history of New Zealand libraries.
Fire was the scourge of colonial towns and cities. Old, tinder-dry wooden buildings and books were a highly combustible combination, and many private and public libraries caught alight.
In the early 20th century a number of New Zealand communities established ‘free’ libraries with the assistance of a Scottish-born American businessman and philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie.
Charles Wilson was the first chief librarian of the General Assembly Library. He oversaw the library's move into its new ‘fireproof’ building in 1901 and saw that the contents of the library were successfully evacuated during the parliamentary fire of 1907. Wilson was also intimately involved in the transfer of Alexander Turnbull's collection to the government, and was subsequently appointed to supervise the development of the Alexander Turnbull Library.
John Barr was the chief librarian at Auckland Public Library from 1913 to 1952. He instituted significant changes and steadily campaigned for free library service in the city. He also co-authored a report which is credited with setting the direction for the development of New Zealand's modern library system.
