Library Dispersal and Acquisition: Links Between the British Library and National Trust

In September 2021 the first round of collaborative Doctoral Fellowships was announced by the British Library and the National Trust. The first round was to consist of two fellowships: “‘Creative Networks and Authors’ Houses’: Links Between the British Library and National Trust” and “Library Dispersal and Acquisition: Links Between the British Library and National Trust.” Applications closed in October 2021, and the fellowships were awarded to begin in January 2022. The first was undertaken by Josip Martincic (University of Exeter) and the second by myself, Laura Blair (Queen Mary, University of London).

I began the Doctoral Fellowship in January 2022, working on a part-time (0.5FTE) basis over the course of six months, finishing in July 2022. I took an interruption of studies from my full-time PhD at Queen Mary, University of London (funded by the Wellcome Trust) in order to complete the BL-NT Fellowship whilst also undertaking a Wellcome-funded Secondment Fellowhip at the Museum of the Home. My PhD research focuses on the libraries of nineteenth-century lunatic asylums and the role of reading as ‘therapeutic’; as such, I came to the project with an understanding of the history of the development and use of libraries. This, alongside experience working with archival records and special collections, gave me confidence in conducting research for the Fellowship. In addition, given my work in the museums sector, I was drawn to the project due to its relation to notions of what constitutes an item of ‘national significance’ and the institutions which are seen as devoting themselves to the preservation of cultural heritage.

This report serves as an overview of the Fellowship project, its aims, findings and recommendations for future research and future Fellowship opportunities. The Interim report is available, as are extended reports for each house, are available – these are discussed in Section 6, Outputs.