Division of the State Library of Western Australia
The J S Battye Library (more properly known as the J. S. Battye Library of West Australian History) is an arm of the State Library of Western Australia. It stores much of the state's historical records and original publications including books, newspapers, periodicals, maps, and ephemera, as well as oral history tapes, photographs and artworks, films and video, and non-government records which are kept in the library's Private Archives collection. The Library provides a range of services, including reference, copying, and genealogical services, as well as consultancy and reader education.[1]
Founder
James Battye bust found in Alexander Library Building, Perth, Western Australia
The Library is named after James Sykes Battye, the first State Librarian, who began the collection in the early 1900s. It was established in December 1956.[2]
Librarians
Mollie Lukis and Margaret Medcalf were successors to Battye as Battye librarians, and their long service to the Library was an important part of the library's development.[3]
Location
The Battye Library is housed on the Level 3 of the State Library of Western Australia (formerly known as the Alexander Library Building). The public access can access rare and precious material from the Leah Jane Chen Reading Room. There is a help desk, microfiche readers, reference materials and computers.
The current administrative structure of the State Library has removed mention of the name of the library from the library catalogue and now refers to it as 3rd Floor of the Alexander building, however it still has a web page.[4]
Friends
The Friends of Battye Library has been a significant support to the library during an era where staffing and funding have been reduced by government restrictions on funding.[5] The organisation has been instrumental in attracting external funding for a range of projects including publishing.[6]
Publications
At different stages in the library history, publications have been an important indicator of the library collection and its holdings.[7][8][9]
See also
Izzy Orloff, Fremantle photographer who has a significant collection held by the library
^Ives, Alan (1978), Archives in Western Australia : the Battye Library: M.F.F. Lukis and M. Medcalf: a bibliography, Pearce Press Processed Publications, ISBN978-0-908410-28-6
^Friends of Battye Library - history and description of the organisation in Newsletter: Friends of the Battye Library, No.49 (July 1991), p. 7-9.
^Campbell, Heather; Friends of the Battye Library; State Library of Western Australia; Campbell, Heather; Friends of the Battye Library (2004), Katitjin : a guide to indigenous records in the Battye Library, Friends of Battye Library Inc, ISBN978-0-9580986-1-8
^Library Board of Western Australia; J. S. Battye Library of West Australian History (1981), Select bibliography of the natural history of the Kimberley Region of Western Australia, Library Board of Western Australia, ISBN978-0-7244-6923-9
^Hays, Leigh; Library Board of Western Australia; State Library of Western Australia (2002), Worth telling, worth keeping : a guide to the collections of the J. S. Battye Library of West Australian History, Library Board of Western Australia, ISBN978-0-9581167-0-1
^Howell, Steve (Stephen Edward); Library Board of Western Australia (1997), Dead reckoning : how to find your way through the genealogical jungle of Western Australia, Library Board of Western Australia, ISBN978-0-7244-6979-6
References
Jamieson, Ronda. A people with a past and the J S Battye Library of West Australian history . Fremantle studies, Vol. 4 (2005), p. 22-31.
Publications
J. S. Battye Library of West Australian History; Library Board of Western Australia (1983), Tracing your ancestors : a guide to genealogical sources in the J.S. Battye Library of West Australian history, Library Board of W.A, ISBN978-0-7244-6929-1
J. S. Battye Library of West Australian History; Oakley, Glenda; Library and Information Service of Western Australia; State Archives of Western Australia (1991), Our military ancestors : a guide to sources in the J.S. Battye Library of West Australian History and the State Archives of Western Australia, Library and Information Service of Western Australia, ISBN978-0-7244-6944-4
