Tuesday 13th of December will be a day to remember for the Carnegie Library, John’s Quay, Kilkenny.  In light of the re-location of the main city library to the old Mayfair ballroom in the Abbey Quarter site, there will be a day of celebration of the Carnegie Library and its contribution to the cultural life of Kilkenny. 

Between 1897 and 1913, Andrew Carnegie pledged over £170,000 to fund the building of eighty libraries in Ireland.  One of these was the Carnegie Library on John’s Quay. 

This beautiful historic Carnegie Library was officially opened to the public on 3rd November 1910, and now features over 32,000 items, including adult fiction and factual books, a Young Adult collection, children’s stock, reference materials, music CDs, DVDs and box sets.  The library has wifi access, along with 8 computers for internet access and printing services.

Since its foundation as the city library in Kilkenny in 1910, the Carnegie Library has been a hub of activity in Kilkenny, host to many cultural events and a source of great memories for many Kilkenny families. 

Tuesday 13th December will offer the people of Kilkenny city an opportunity to share memories and enjoy another great event in this historic building. There will be a day of storytelling with Liz Weir, guitarist Mark Anthony McGrath featuring music from his new album ‘Carolan’, afternoon theatre with a celebration of Patrick Kavanagh, a talk on Andrew Carnegie and his “Gospel of Wealth” by historian Dr Mary Muldowney, a short Carnegie reminiscence by Gerry Moran, and special guest appearance by Pauline McLynn.

 “The Carnegie Library in Kilkenny city has made a great contribution to the cultural life of Kilkenny over the many years of its existence. “said County Librarian, Josephine Coyne, “We look forward to a new era and the new Mayfair Library which will offer all the services and opportunities of a fully modern library service”.   

There will be light refreshments during the day also.  Check out our website www.kilkennylibrary.ie for more details and follow us on social media for more information.