| Administrative History | The Leighton Library is one of the oldest private libraries in Scotland. It was built between 1684 and 1687 to hold the books of Robert Leighton, Bishop of Dunblane, 1660 - 71, and Archbishop of Glasgow, 1671 - 74. Between 1734 and the late nineteenth century it was run as a public subscription library. Falling user numbers at this time led to talk of closure, and saw the building and its contents fall badly into disrepair. During the 1950s and the 1980s funds were raised to restore the building, and in 1990 it was re-opened to the public.
Further details about the library are available from The Department of Rare Books and Manuscripts of Stirling University Library See also Gordon Willis, " The Leighton Library, Dunblane: It's History and Contents " in 'Bibliotheck', 10 (1980 - 1981) pp.139-157; " Short notices: The Leighton Library, Dunblane, Catalogue of Manuscripts " in 'Bibliotheck', 11 (1982 - 1983) pp. 73 - 74; and M.C.T. Simpson, Robert Leighton's "Catalogue of His Own Library: A Note" in 'Bibliotheck', 12 (1984 - 1985) pp. 91 - 92. |
| Description | Catalogue of books in the Leighton Library c. 1843, arranged alphabetically by title, giving date of publication and [? original] library shelf mark. The catalogue was compiled by a Miss Kennedy, whose connection with the Library has not been established.
A printed catalogue of the library was published in 1843 by Messers MacLachlan, Stewart and Co., Booksellers, Edinburgh. It is not known whether this record is a manuscript copy of that publication, or in any other way related. For further details see articles cited in administrative history section. |
| Copyright | Subject to the condition of the original, copies may be supplied for private research use only on receipt of a signed undertaking to comply with current copyright legislation. Permission to make any published use of material from the collection must be sought in advance from the University Archivist and, where appropriate, from the copyright owner. Where possible, assistance will be given in identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material. |