University Library

In 1851 the University Senate formed a committee to select books even before any professors were appointed. The first volume acquired was a Greek-Latin lexicon.

Further books and a book case were purchased from local resident Rev Dr Mackaen in 1852 and a list of desiderata was sent to London.

Frederick Hale Forshall "late scholar of Trinity College, Cambridge" was appointed Librarian in 1852. He resigned after 15 months and the position of Librarian lapsed for sixty years, during which time the Library was under the general direction of the Registrar, aided by an "Assistant Librarian".

A room on the first floor in the Main Building (now the Senate Room) was prepared for the Library in 1857. A year later the first meeting of the Library Committee considered a list of books needed for the Library, a list of periodicals held, the desirability of a catalogue and revision of library rules. The Committee's first resolution was a recommendation to the Senate that "further bookshelves be provided in the Library for the books for which at the present time there is no room".

In 1878, after decades of sporadic additions, businessman Thomas Walker purchased and presented to the University the private library of the late Nicol Stenhouse, lawyer and leading figure in Sydney's literary and cultural life. The 4,000 volumes precipitated an accommodation crisis and a library building became the University's most pressing need.

In 1885 the University received thirty thousand pounds from the estate of the late Thomas Fisher, retired bootmaker and property investor, to be used "in establishing and maintaining a library".

Thomas Fisher had lived near the University and although not a formally educated man, often walked through the University grounds and talked with staff and students. He attended official functions and would have heard the appeal in 1879 by the Chancellor, Sir William Manning, for "one of our men of great wealth and equal public spirit" to fund "a library worthy of comparison with like edifices at Home". Fisher had also known Stenhouse and would have been impressed that his friend's collection had been considered such an important addition to the Library. Thomas Fisher was the Library's greatest benefactor but unfortunately no image of him survives.

There was a difference of opinion in the University on how to spend the bequest. The Chancellor thought the fund should be used for a building and to contribute to the salary of a Librarian, but the Vice Chancellor and Library Committee preferred to buy books. In 1887 a compromise was reached. £20,000 plus accumulated interest was set aside for a building fund with the hope that the government would provide matching funds and £10,000 was directed to an endowment for books. In the event the fund supported the salary of an assistant librarian and later the Librarian until 1937. From 1882 to 1914 the Registrar H E Barff was responsible for the Library. His Assistant, Caleb Hardy, pioneered the use of the new Dewey decimal classification in Australia and printed catalogues were published in 1885, 1893 and 1900. By the turn of the century the collection had reached 50,000 volumes. A second staff member was appointed in 1894 and a third in 1898.

After many reversals and delays the NSW government agreed to fund the full cost of a new library building and the Fisher capital could be preserved as an endowed book fund. Plans were drawn up for the library by the Government Architect, Walter Vernon, and construction took eight years.

Fisher Library opened in 1909. The reading room was in the Gothic tradition with a magnificent cedar roof but the adjoining multi-tier book stack was of advanced design, including two electric book lifts. The reading room is now the MacLaurin Hall.

The number of department libraries had grown over the first half of the century but gradually some were incorporated into the library system or combined with others. By 1981 there were 10 branches and 5 department libraries.

On 1 January 1990 three colleges of advanced education and two parts of a fourth amalgamated with the University. After protracted negotiations the Institutes of Education and Nursing of the Sydney College of Advanced Education joined the University Library and three college libraries remained separate. The mergers took total staff numbers to 271, boosted the collections to 4.2 million items and increased the number of branch libraries to 22. The addition of the 4 millionth item went unnoticed in the turmoil. 

The momentum for automating library services was building and although automated loans were available in four branch libraries by 1992, funding constraints impeded further progress. 

In 1993 a review of the Library was held, led by Professor Mairead Browne. Implementation of its major recommendations began the following year with the University funding a new automated system. The new system went live in 1995 and transformed the library into a full network, offering automated services at all sites. The Library's first web site was launched that year. 

Another major recommendation of the review was that "all the University of Sydney libraries be managed as one system for which the University Librarian is responsible" and in 1996 three department libraries and the Cumberland College of Health Sciences joined the library system.

The Scholarly Electronic Text and Image Service (SETIS) was established in 1996 to provide a platform for full-text databases and to facilitate textual studies at the university. SETIS was the first service of its kind in Australia and has developed as a national platform for innovative electronic publishing and digital library conversion projects. SETIS is a key participant and host in collaborative projects such as the AustLit database, the Australian Federation Full Text Database and the Australian Digital Theses Program.

Two college libraries were added in 1998, raising staff numbers to over 300, a peak unlikely to be reached again. A restructuring process was begun, driven by a funding shortfall and the need to meet a changing environment. 

In 1999 the Library instituted a policy of acquiring networked electronic resources in preference to print when equivalent versions were available. By the turn of the century the Library's web site had become the primary access to library resources and services. In 2002 the Library purchased its 5 millionth acquisition, Early English Books Online (EEBO).