The Library of Innerpeffray

For my 1500 blip I wanted something special, something with a literary connection.
 
And what better than a visit to the library of Innerpeffray, the oldest lending library in Scotland,  and one of Scotland's hidden gems,  just a few miles outside Crieff.

The library of Innerpeffray was at the dawn of the Scottish Enlightment, a culture of reading and learning unique in Europe. ( see extra photo)
 
By 1750 every Scottish town of any size had a lending library.  Moreover 75 percent of the adult population could read and write, compared to 53 per cent in England.
 
We get to burrow through old maps, handling rare books and a myriad of literary treasures because it has around 5000 books and the closing times for the library are flexible. ( see extra photo.)
 
As Lara Haggerty,  Keeper of the books,( pictured),  says :”If people have made the effort to come here then we are happy to stay open longer.”
 
One of the Library’s greatest treasures is the ‘ borrowers’ ledger’, recording every loan made from 1747 until lending ceased in 1968.
 
This provides an extraordinary insight into the reading habits and interest of Innerpeffray’s  users, from stonemasons to students of philosophy, over two centuries.
 
   
I learnt one curious fact: the lending libraries were always upstairs in order to avoid the damp on the ground floor.