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A rich resource for research, or a place to borrow the latest novel.
Morrab Library is an independent library established in 1818, situated in the beautiful Morrab Gardens in Penzance, Cornwall. We hold over 70,000 books on floor-to-ceiling shelves as well as archives and a rich photographic collection. The library contains a wide range of both fiction and non-fiction books in the rambling rooms of a delightful Victorian building.
We are open Tuesday – Saturday 10am-4pm.
Latest news
A small step towards the future for Morrab Library
We thought you’d like to know about a rather significant milestone in the history of Morrab Library. Friday the 14th May saw us catalogue our first library book into KOHA, our new online library system. Member, volunteer and former Chair Peter Chapman...
April Reopening
Morrab Library will be opening again on the 14th April, although still in a very limited capacity. The necessity to keep staff, volunteers and members as safe as possible remains our first priority, and we will need to continue to work within the context of health and...
Conrad Gesner – fantastic creatures and ancient books
Humans have been drawing what they see of the natural world for over 40,00 years. Initially capturing images on rocks and in caves, this evolved over many centuries into hand drawn depictions and written descriptions being recorded in manuscripts. The development of...
If there is an afterlife, I very much hope that those good enough in this one might be rewarded with an exact replica of the Morrab Library – to sit out eternity browsing its shelves, reading in its chairs, and looking out of its high windows.
Whether you’re an impassioned bibliophile or just someone who loves a good read, the Morrab is for you: a Cornish treasure house, a meeting place for like-minded souls, and a vibrant forum for contemporary writing.
Formally known, in those days, as the Penzance Library, the elegant house in its beautiful garden had a welcoming atmosphere and BOOKS – rooms full of them, in shelves floor to ceiling, on every topic I could possibly want to read about…it’s…a treasure house, an island of civilization and tranquility in an ever faster and more furious world.