Macmillan Brown Library has created a display to kick off UC’s 150th year, looking at the history of libraries at UC. It features some unique archival items such as an 1893 library borrower’s register, featuring books issued to undergrads Apirana Ngata and Ernest Rutherford.
There are so many wonderful photos in the archives of UC libraries at work – more than would fit in our display – so we are sharing them here. Above, the wooden card catalogue in all its glory in the late 1980s. Below, some 1960s students browsing the shelves in an entirely natural fashion…
One of our favourite items in the display is a genuine vintage librarian smock, seen in action here, behind the Circulation Desk, when the library was still on the town campus in the 1960s. 
Back to the 1980s for this wide shot of PJH Level 2, complete with the obligatory “Quiet Please” sign and some chunky looking computer screens.
Finally, here are the 1950s Library staff on the roof of the Library in what is now the Arts Centre
and off on a jolly outing to the Canterbury Centennial Fun Fair in Hagley Park (maybe one we can re-create sometime??!!)
The UC library history display will be in the MB foyer for at least another week, so come and check it out (on lookout for it on social media soon)
On the right of the first photo is Kate Samuel, who taught me about Interloans.
Bizarrely, the student studying hard on the left is a friend of mine – I didn’t know the photo existed until I saw it in his house in Auckland a couple of weeks ago! He was able to date it for us – 1985. And apparently the photographer was taking photos for a book on university libraries around the world?
I am interested to see how terrifyingly quiet the Library looks in the photos showing the wider environment – it is such a contrast to the bustling space we have now.
Cataloguing and Acquisitions workrooms were also very quite work areas when I started in the late ’80s – located on that same floor, behind a wall on the left – which was heavenly for some of us 🙂
The woman at the bottom right corner I’m pretty sure was the catalogue-card filer; can’t remember her name, though. When I started in Cataloguing the cards were generated from our Burroughs computer, a behemoth mainframe located in the IT building.
John – I was wondering if it was Lorraine Thompson filing catalogue cards,
Alison
Yes, you’re right 🙂
Excellent selection of pics. Thanks for putting these together.
I wore a blue library smock when I started my first job as a Library Assistant in 1971. They came in a variety of colours, red, brown, green and blue.