Reclassification, collection management and ideas of nation:

The Salisbury Library, Cardiff University

Helen Price Saunders “Conversations with cataloguers” 6th March 2012

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Enoch Robert Gibbon Salisbury 1819-1890

• MP for Chester 1857-1859

• Businessman• Barrister• Book collector• Bibliophile• Bankrupt

Enoch Salisbury’s books

• Books in Welsh

• Books about Wales

• Books by Welsh writers

• Books about the Marches, or Border Counties

The Salisbury Library comes to Cardiff

• Alleged bankruptcy of Enoch Salisbury

• Secret machinations

• The purchase in 1886

• Special book train!

Ideas of nation: a National Library?

• A National Library in waiting

• Cardiff Public Library

• 1905 and all that

• Memorial of the Corporation of Cardiff praying that his Majesty's government may be recommended to appoint Cardiff as the site of the national museum and library for Wales (1905)

Jack the Ripper?

High and dry?Beached collections

Salisbury Library and Cardiff’s rare books

Classification

• Enoch Salisbury’s original shelf marks

• The ubiquitous “W”• In-house scheme

• W Celtic• WA Irish• WB Scottish

(Gaelic)• WC Manx• WE Cornish• WF Breton• WG Welsh

The in-house scheme (W-WF)

• 1 General• 2 Philosophy/theology• 3 History• 4 Geography• 5 Folklore/Mythology/Religion• 6 Law• 7 Music/Hymns• 8 Language• 9 Literature

The in-house scheme: WG (Welsh)

• Begins like the other sections but many more subdivisions

• Subdivisions reflected collection at the time (mid 1970s?)

• Additions and alterations, uneven growth• WG1-WG20, WG30-WG45, WG50 • Range is from WG1-WG19 and WG40-45

only (upstairs), all numbers are in use in SCOLAR

My favourite bad bits

• WG1 General, Encyclopaedias etc.

• WG45 Encyclopaedias

• WG2 Philosophy & theology, general works

• WG5.3 Works of theologians

• WG5.4 Theological works in English

More bad bits

• WG4.2 History of Wales, 1485 to the present day

• WG8 Economics & industries of Wales, & transport

• WG9 Social conditions in Wales (Social reform, sport, media)

• WG10 Politics

• WG20 Miscellaneous works

Library of Congress

• Similar pattern of numbers and letters

• More detailed scheme, easier to fit new subjects in, more specific numbers, consistency with the rest of the library

• Standardization

• Complaints about the in-house scheme

• Clearing the way for outsourcing

• BUT …

Library of Congress : bad bits

• “For Wales, see England”

• Lack of focus for a special interest collection

• Classweb omits some “Welsh” numbers altogether

• Welsh history

• Cutter numbers

Classification problems

•Henry VIII and Cutter numbers

A collection with a separate identity?

• Housed separately 1886-1976

• ASSL 1976-

• Creation of SCOLAR split the collection, 2004

• ASSL refurbishment

The (cold) wind of change

• Collection Management policies: “one size fits all”?

• Pressure of space• Minority interest• Imperial College

London

17th June 1886

“The loss of my books even is now sweetened to me by the reflection that they are safely housed within her borders, and that they will still be cared for by very loving hearts, some of whom will for years to come think tenderly of my own care for them, nor be likely to forget how they have been the chief comforts of my life. I rejoice to think that year by year they will be added to, and that within the walls of your College will hereafter be found the true history of our nation …”

E. Salisbury

References

• The Western Mail, 15/6/1886 and 16/6/1886• James, B. (1988), “The Salisbury Collection”, New Welsh Review,

Vol. 1 no. 2 pp71-73.• Keelan P. (1993), “Salisbury Library, Cardiff: Conspectus

assessment”, Y Ddolen, Spring [14] [pp 1-3].• Keelan, P. (1996), “Salisbury Library, Cardiff: Welsh research

collection to Celtic Internet database”, Library Review, Vol.45 issue 3 pp.6-20.

• Morgan, J.H. (1937), “Y Salesbury”, Y Llenor, Vol. 16 pp39-51.• Morgan, J.H. (1937), “A letter from a book collector: E.R.G.

Salisbury”, Journal of the Welsh Bibliographical Society, Vol. 5 no. 1 pp33-40.