South Shields Public Library

[Babooshka]

in Ocean Road.
Thought I'd start a thread about one of my favourite places to go as a kidlet, from initially pushing through the brass turnstile with orange library tickets in my pocket (nothing was computerised) to going upstairs to take a look in the Victorian museum which was filled with stuffed animals and birds, locally produced glasswares and various other articles, and always that gorgeous musty smell you get with old buildings.
As you entered the library there used to be a glass case containing four sides and a bottom slab of stone, was this a tomb of some sort??
Also still in occupation but at the foot of the stairs now is the beautiful black ebony figurine (Nepalese??) which I'm gonna take a photo of soon and post it.
I'm hoping someone here can help me find out where the statue of the Man with a Mule went to? which also used to be in the upstairs museum as it would be nice to see it again if it's still in the area? The Hancock maybe?
I've searched high and low on the web for a nice photo of the library as it was in the 60's/70's but can't find a thing. Wonder if the new library has anything in the archives??

[Jerry]

One of my favourite places as a boy. In those days there wasn't a turnstile
In the entrance hall there was a bronze age burial 'kist' and a fine model of a sailing ship.

To the right was the fiction library, always light and always thronged. I rarely went in, but I remember photos of suthors including J.B. Priestley.

Further on the right was the reading room with newspapaers spread out on wooden stands. It was full of men in macks reading the shippuing pages.
You had to stand.

Up the stairs (no figurine) to the museum. Stuffed squirrel, medals. I don't recall THe Man With The Donkey as he is know. This chap JOHN SIMPSON KIRKPATRICK is a very famous man in Australia with statues everywhere. He was not only a hero at Gallipoli in WWI but is taken to typify the essential Aussie character. He's known there as SIMPSON. There are threads about him on this board.

There are three memorials to him in Shields. Where this one is I couldn't say but it would hardly be in the Hancock.

To the right was the reference library- lots of polished wood and a vast picture of Britannia doing something on the wall. Where did they get these things from?

Downstairs again on the right was my haunt, the non-fiction library. It was very capacious, darkish and smelt wonderfully of Mansion polish. Few people in there, but rows and rows of huge shelves with lovely leather-bound books.

[Babooshka]

Thanks very much for that info Jerry, I knew the man Kilpatrick had an Australian/Wartime connection and nice you can remember the stone 'kist' too.

The childrens library was on the right as you came in when ar wur a lass...many happy days mooching about

[Jerry]

I see from old posts that Memor recalls a pride of 'moth-eaten lions' downstairs in the entrance hall, but I have a feeling that they were in the museum upstairs.

I don't remember a childrens' library at all!

I see there is a Kirkpatrick pub in Shields with a statue outside it.

If I find the Kirkpatrick posts I'll put them here. They're very interesting.

[Pooter]

The main attraction at the library back in 1968 was the gorgeous young dark haired librarian who was often in the non fiction department.

Never knew who she was.

[Babooshka]

the moth eaten lions were upstairs in the museum when I used to go. Jerry you'll probably know of the SS Marine/Technical college which had an annexe in Ocean Road some years ago, well Kirkpatricks pub is now inside that stunning building

[Delilahcat]

Just discussing the Library today. My memories are about 1956 onwards. Going in the entrance past the tomb you turned right and the childrens library was a row of shelves about five of them against the wall. The rest of the room was adult fiction. You were restricted to one or two books which was nothing to a voracious reader like me. I read my way through the entire stock. But then I discovered the non fiction section which was on the left as you came in. There you could get several books out and...they weren't all non fiction. The classics were in that section so as well as something like Seven Years in Tibet I could get Germinal or Anna Karenina. The Reading Room in my day was further back on the right hand side. Upstairs as well as the stuffed animals were glass cases full of fiendish weapons from the South Seas. Bows , arrows, knives and clubs all donated by well travelled Shields folk.
As what happy memories. When I was a young mum I wheeled the pram from Tyne Dock and introduced the babes to choosing books. My daughter says she can remember walking round and round while I chose my books.
Now I buy books all the time, something I could only dream of as a child.

[offthewall]

Pooter....
>>The main attraction at the library back in 1968 was the gorgeous young dark haired librarian who was often in the non fiction department.

Never knew who she was.<<

She's my wife !

[Cisco]

That moth eaten lion is now in the Sunderland museum, I was in there today and seen it.
I was in there looking at the photograph exhibition that they are showing until November, it's very good.

Cisco

[Pooter]

Pooter....
>>The main attraction at the library back in 1968 was the gorgeous young dark haired librarian who was often in the non fiction department.

Never knew who she was.<<

She's my wife !

Lucky you!! The number of books I got out and "read" in a day must have been in the hundreds.

[baldy.smith]

The first "Man with the donkey" I saw was in 1949 and had pride of place in the main hall of Mortimer Road Secondary School. It wasn't very big and appeared to be made of bronze. We were told the story behind it and that Kerkpatrick had been a pupil at the school.

[Babooshka]

are these the same type of reading rooms as the one which was at Laygate near the clock.

[robpapE2]

yes the attraction was to find somewhere warm in this cold climate and reading rooms were one way of providing this along with trying to stay in the local cinema and watch the films twice !!!!
as to attractive young ladies... a common strategy was to ask for books
in the reference library upstairs which just happened to be on (or near)
the top shelf..no doubt to view the ankles of said young ladies..often a male assistant was sent for to spoil the readers fun!!!!
more fun was the restricted issue (naughty books) kept away from public view...Frank Harris ,Walter- my secret life and various illustrated art books
often kept in the Chief Librarians Office -why should he have all the fun ??

[urfa]

I spent many a rainy afternoon in the non fiction library, I would get a book and go to the end of an isle and sit on the chair there beside the window and read all afternoon, the librarian would keep on looking down the isle to see what I was up too, I prefered adventure story's and reading plays much to every ones surprise, I took one or two of them home to read.
I don't remember any tombs being in the foryer, I remember the ship, and the statue of Simspson and his donkey that used to stand on the staircase up to the museum, it was on a pedastel I often wondered what happened to it, but it is mentioned in here that there was a similar one at mortimer road school, it wasn't there when I went to Mortimer rd school, so it could be the one from the library

[memor]

Did I say downstairs I should have said upstairs.

I not believe they are in Sunderland Museum. I would have thought they'd been burnt years ago.

Maybe South Shields Curator is Blackmailing Sunderland Curator to take them.

"Take our stuffed Lions or I'll tell your wife." I imagine he said.

And what it was we will never know.

[Barney]

I'm afraid I wasn't too popular in Shields libraries.
I had this terrible habit of never returning any books I borrowed!!
Cost me a lot in overdue fines!!
And I still have a few to return!!!!

I rarely got to the main library, as Boldon Lane library was nearer to us, and had a much better kids section.

Later, I stayed away from libraries, as my own, at @ 4000 volumes, doesn't fine me for keeping them a little longer, or expect me to give them back. That's a much better arrangement for me!!!

[robpapE2]

I'm afraid I wasn't too popular in Shields libraries.
I had this terrible habit of never returning any books I borrowed!!
Cost me a lot in overdue fines!!
And I still have a few to return!!!!

I rarely got to the main library, as Boldon Lane library was nearer to us, and had a much better kids section.

Later, I stayed away from libraries, as my own, at @ 4000 volumes, doesn't fine me for keeping them a little longer, or expect me to give them back. That's a much better arrangement for me!!!

If you have 4,000 volumes there can't be many books left over here..I always as an ex librarian wonder how people who "liberate" library books feel about taking a popular book which has a long waiting list ????
Do they think that well the library can toddle off and buy another one..just like that ?????

[brian c]

The man with the donkey statue outside the museum in Ocean Road

[img][img]http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/9482 ... ickgq8.jpg[/img][/img]

[StottieCake]

brian c - good picture and no bird poo covering the statue.

I remember Big Hec collecting a bucket of money for Kirkpatrick's cause