Editing Library of Parliament

{{Short description|Library of parliament of Canada in Ottawa}}
{{Infobox library
| library_name = Library of Parliament
| library_logo = Library of Parliament (Canada) (emblem).png
| image = Ottawa - ON - Library of Parliament.jpg
| caption = Library of Parliament, Ottawa
| type = Information repository and research resource for the [[Parliament of Canada]]
| established = 1876
| ref_legal_mandate = 
| coordinates = {{coord|45.425466|-75.700296|type:landmark_region:CA-ON|display=title,inline}}
| num_branches = 
| items_collected = 
| collection_size = 650,000 items
| legal_deposit = 
| criteria = Parliamentary business, research publications
| annual_circulation = 
| budget = 
| director = Christine Ivory
| num_employees = 400
| website = {{Official website|http://www.parl.gc.ca/About/Library/VirtualLibrary/index-e.asp}}
}}

The '''Library of Parliament''' ({{langx|fr|Bibliothèque du Parlement}}) is the main information repository and research resource for the [[Parliament of Canada]]. The main branch of the library sits at the rear of the [[Centre Block]] on [[Parliament Hill]] in [[Ottawa]], [[Ontario]]. The library survived the [[Centre Block#Great fire|1916 fire]] that destroyed Centre Block. The library has been augmented and renovated several times since its construction in 1876, the last between 2002 and 2006, though the form and decor remain essentially authentic. The building today serves as a [[National symbols of Canada|Canadian icon]], and appears on the obverse of the [[Canadian ten-dollar bill]].

The library is overseen by the [[Parliamentary Librarian of Canada]] and an associate or assistant librarian. The [[Canadian Parliamentary Poet Laureate]] is considered to be an officer of the library.

==Main branch characteristics==
[[File:Canadian Parlimentary Library Interior.jpg|thumb|left|The main reading room of the Library of Parliament]]

Designed by [[Thomas Fuller (architect)|Thomas Fuller]] and [[Chilion Jones]], and inspired by the [[British Museum Reading Room]],<ref name=PWGSC2>{{cite web| url=http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/histoire-history/bdp-lop/exbblthq-exlbrry-eng.html| title=A Treasure to Explore > Parliament Hill > History of the Hill > Library of Parliament > Exterior| author=Public Works and Government Services Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2008-12-30| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100206141205/http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/histoire-history/bdp-lop/exbblthq-exlbrry-eng.html| archive-date=2010-02-06}}</ref> the building is formed as a [[chapter house]],<ref name=PWGSC>{{cite web| url=http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/histoire-history/bdp-lop/inbblthq-inlbrry-eng.html| title=A Treasure to Explore > Parliament Hill > History of the Hill > Library of Parliament > Interior| author=Public Works and Government Services Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2008-12-30| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706181633/http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/histoire-history/bdp-lop/inbblthq-inlbrry-eng.html| archive-date=2011-07-06}}</ref> separated from the main body of the Centre Block by a corridor; this arrangement, as well as many other details of the design, was reached with the input of the then parliamentary librarian, [[Alpheus Todd]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/histoire-history/1859-1916-04-eng.html| title=A Treasure to Explore > Parliament Hill > The History of Parliament Hill > Construction, 1859-1916 > The Library| author=Public Works and Government Services Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2009-01-01| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706181708/http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/histoire-history/1859-1916-04-eng.html| archive-date=2011-07-06}}</ref> The walls, supported by a ring of 16 [[flying buttress]]es, are loadbearing, double-[[wythe]] masonry, consisting of a hydraulic lime [[Rubble masonry|rubble fill]] core between an interior layer of dressed stone and rustic Nepean sandstone on the exterior.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/mcnnr-msnry-eng.html | title=Parliament Hill > Modernization of the Buildings > Library of Parliament > Exterior Work > Masonry| author=Library of Parliament| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2008-12-29| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706181628/http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/mcnnr-msnry-eng.html| archive-date=2011-07-06}}</ref> Around the windows and along other edges is dressed stone trim, along with a multitude of [[rock carving|stone carvings]], including floral patterns and [[frieze]]s, keeping with the [[Gothic Revival architecture in Canada#Victorian High Gothic|Victorian High Gothic style]] of the rest of the parliamentary complex. The roof, set in three tiers topped by a [[cupola]], used to be a timber frame structure covered with slate tiles, but has been rebuilt with steel framing and deck covered with [[copper]].<ref name="Lib">{{cite web |author=Library of Parliament |title=Parliament of Canada > Library of Parliament |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/publications/LoP/LOP-e.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080623102214/http://www.parl.gc.ca/publications/LoP/LOP-e.asp |archive-date=2008-06-23 |access-date=2008-12-29 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref> The initial overall combination of colours—grey Gloucester limestone and grey Nepean, red Potsdam and buff Ohio sandstones, as well as purple and green slate banding—conformed to the [[picturesque]] style known as ''structural polychromy''.<ref name=CA>{{cite journal |last=Chodikoff |first=Ian |title=Parliamentary Briefing |journal=Canadian Architect |publisher=Business Information Group |location=Toronto |date=September 2006 |url=https://www.canadianarchitect.com/parliamentary-briefing/ |access-date=May 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126211518/https://www.canadianarchitect.com/parliamentary-briefing/ |archive-date=January 26, 2021}}</ref>

The main reading room rises to a vaulted ceiling and the walls and stacks are lined with white pine panelling carved into a variety of textures, flowers, masks, and mythical creatures. In the galleries are displayed the coats of arms of the seven provinces that existed in 1876, as well as that of the Dominion of Canada, and standing directly in the centre of the room is a white marble statue of [[Queen Victoria]], sculpted by [[Marshall Wood]] in 1871.<ref name=Lib /> The northern galleries are also flanked with the white marble busts of [[John Sandfield Macdonald|Sir John Sandfield Macdonald]]; [[Edward VII of the United Kingdom|Prince Edward, Prince of Wales]] (later King Edward VII); [[Alexandra of Denmark|Alexandra, Princess of Wales]] (later Queen Alexandra); and [[Étienne-Paschal Taché|Sir Étienne-Paschal Taché]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Baker|first=Wendy|title=Restoration of a Marble Sculpture from the Library of Parliament|url=http://www.cci-icc.gc.ca/about-apropos/nb/nb35/victoria-eng.aspx|work=CCI Newsletter, No. 35, June 2005|publisher=Canadian Conservation Institute|access-date=26 February 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706181413/http://www.cci-icc.gc.ca/about-apropos/nb/nb35/victoria-eng.aspx|archive-date=6 July 2011}}</ref>

The library's collection comprises 650,000 items, covering hundreds of years of history and tended by a staff of 300.<ref name=PWGSC /> Access to the facility is generally restricted to those on parliamentary business, but research publications are produced by the library and are available to the public.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Research Publications |url=https://lop.parl.ca/sites/PublicWebsite/default/en_CA/ResearchPublications#gsc.tab=0 |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=lop.parl.ca}}</ref> The main branch on Parliament Hill is only the central hub of a larger complex that spreads to other parliamentary buildings, where services are offered in a number of branch libraries and reading rooms.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Service Areas |url=https://lop.parl.ca/sites/PublicWebsite/default/en_CA/About/Services?selected=Services |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=lop.parl.ca}}</ref>

==History==
The Library of Parliament's roots lie in the 1790s, when the legislative libraries of [[Upper Canada|Upper]] and [[Lower Canada]] were created; these operated separately until the creation of the [[Province of Canada]] in 1841 and the collections were amalgamated and followed the provincial capital as it moved between [[Kingston, Ontario|Kingston]], [[Montreal]], [[Toronto]], and [[Quebec City]]. The library was to be established in Ottawa after, in 1867, [[Queen Victoria]] chose [[Bytown]] as the new seat for her crown in the Dominion of Canada, and the Library of Parliament Act formed the institution in 1871.<ref name=Library-today>{{cite web |first=Pierrette |last=Landry |title=The Library of Parliament Today |publisher=Office of the Parliamentary Librarian |date=1 August 2001 |url=http://www.ifla.org/VII/s3/annual/par-libpl.pdf |access-date=May 8, 2022}}</ref>

Though construction of the present library began in 1859 and the collection arrived in Ottawa in 1866, work was halted in 1861 and was not completed until 1876, when the 47,000 volumes—including several donated by Queen Victoria—were installed. Around 1869, the builders discovered that they didn't have the technical knowledge to build the domed roof, meaning that [[Thomas Fairbairn]] Engineering Co. Ltd. of [[Manchester]] had to be contracted to provide a prefabricated dome within a few weeks; this gave the Library of Parliament the distinction of being the first building in [[North America]] to have a state-of-the-art wrought iron roof. Further, in 1883, the library's 300 gas lights were converted to electricity.<ref name=CA /> However, such additional costs brought the library's price to $301,812, a sum added on top of the total cost for all the parliament buildings, which had already gone far above the original allotted budget.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ottawa.ca/residents/heritage/archives/virtual_exhibit/building_en.html |title=Residents > Heritage > Archives > A Virtual Exhibit: Ottawa Becomes the Capital > Building the Physical Reality |author=City of Ottawa |publisher=City of Ottawa |access-date=2009-01-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209045846/http://ottawa.ca/residents/heritage/archives/virtual_exhibit/building_en.html |archive-date=2008-12-09 }}</ref> Within only 12 years, the entire roof was stripped of its slate shingles in a tornado that hit Parliament Hill in 1888; since then, the roof has been clad in copper.<ref name=CA />

The library's contents grew over the next five decades and were saved from the 1916 fire that destroyed the majority of the Centre Block; the building was only connected to the main complex by a single corridor and the library clerk at the time, [[Michael MacCormac]], secured the library's iron doors before the fire could spread into that area.<ref name=PWGSC /> Fire eventually broke out in 1952, in the library's cupola, and caused extensive damage through smoke and water. It was then necessary to perform structural work, as well as to install a replica of the inlaid parquet floor and dismantle the wood panelling and ship it to Montreal for cleaning and partial fireproofing.<ref name=Library-today /> The Centre, [[East Block|East]], and [[West Block]]s subsequently received extensive [[HVAC|climate control]] and electrical upgrades, but the library was largely overlooked.

The deficiencies, plus conservation, rehabilitation, and upgrading, were addressed when a major, $52 million renovation was researched in 1996 and undertaken between 2002 and 2006.<ref>{{Cite news| last=Williams| first=Patricia| title=Canada's heritage top of mind in library restoration| newspaper=Daily Commercial News| date=30 June 2006| url=http://www.dcnonl.com/article/20060630100| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727195020/http://www.dcnonl.com/article/20060630100| archive-date=27 July 2011}}</ref> [[Public Works and Government Services Canada]] contracted the [[Thomas Fuller Construction Company]] (operated by the building designer's great-grandsons) to manage a project that fixed leaks in the roof and crumbling mortar in the walls on the exterior,<ref>{{cite journal| title=37th Parliament, 1st Session| journal=Hansard| issue=138| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| location=Ottawa| date=4 February 2002| url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=1384905&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=37&Ses=1#Int-118576| access-date=2008-12-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/extrr-eng.html| title=Parliament Hill > Modernization of the Buildings > Library of Parliament > Exterior Work| author=Public Works and Government Services Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2008-12-29| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100214095622/http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/extrr-eng.html| archive-date=2010-02-14}}</ref> as well as extensive repairs to the wood and plaster work and the installation of climate control systems on the interior.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/intrr-eng.html| title=Parliament Hill > Modernization of the Buildings > Library of Parliament > Interior Work| author=Public Works and Government Services Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2008-12-29| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706181619/http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/intrr-eng.html| archive-date=2011-07-06}}</ref> Also done at the time was a nine-metre-deep excavation of the bedrock beneath the library building, in order to provide more storage space, mechanical areas, and a link to an existing loading dock.<ref name=NP>{{Cite news |last=Payton |first=Laura |title=Ottawa's Library of Parliament at centre of $21M lawsuit |newspaper=National Post |date=3 November 2008 |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/story.html?id=930008}} {{dead link|date=March 2010}}</ref> The project used precision survey, [[laser]] measurement, [[photogrammetry]], and the then fledgling technology of [[CATIA|Computer Aided Three Dimensional Interactive Application]].<ref name=CA /> After four years of work, the library was opened to the public, with tours of the library resuming on 5 June 2006,<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/bblthq-lbrry-eng.html| title=Parliament Hill > Modernization of the Buildings > Library of Parliament| author=Public Works and Government Services Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2008-12-29| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090204221423/http://www.collineduparlement-parliamenthill.gc.ca/modern/bblthq-lbrry-eng.html| archive-date=2009-02-04}}</ref> though Thomas Fuller Construction filed a $21 million lawsuit against the Crown for cost overruns.<ref name=NP />

<gallery widths="200px" heights="180px">
File:Parliament section.jpg|A [[Technical drawing|drafted]] architectural section of the original Centre Block, showing the Victoria Tower at the far left, and the Library of Parliament to the right
File:View of the Library of Parliament and the Centre Block on the day after the Centre Block fire.jpg|The library of Parliament standing unharmed the day following the fire of 1916
File:Library of Parliament renovation - 2003 (DSC00487) (cropped).jpg|The library undergoing renovations in 2003
</gallery>

==Parliamentary librarians==
* '''1870–1884:''' [[Alpheus Todd]]
* '''1885–1920:''' Martin Joseph Griffin, [[Alfred Duclos DeCelles]] (Griffin and DeCelles shared the post)
* '''1920–1938:''' [[Martin Burrell]]
* '''1944–1959:''' Francis Aubrey Hardy
* '''1960–1994:''' Erik John Spicer
* '''1994–2005:''' Richard Paré
* '''2005–2011:''' [[William R. Young]]'''<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/parlinfo/compilations/officersandofficials/ProceduralOfficersAndSeniorOfficials_Library.aspx| last=Parliament of Canada| author-link=Parliament of Canada| title=Officers and Officials of Parliament| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=20 November 2010}}</ref>'''
* '''2012–2018:''' [[Sonia L'Heureux]]<ref>{{cite web| url=http://pm.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?category=1&featureId=6&pageId=26&id=4871| last=Office of the Prime Minister of Canada| title=PM nominates next Parliamentary Librarian| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=18 June 2012| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130404024745/http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?category=1&featureId=6&pageId=26&id=4871| archive-date=4 April 2013}}</ref>
*'''2018–2024''': Heather Lank
*'''2024–present''': Christine Ivory

==Partnerships and collaboration==
The Library of Parliament is a member of the [[Canadian Association of Research Libraries]].

==See also==
* [[Library and Archives Canada]]
* [[New Zealand Parliamentary Library]]
* [[House of Commons Library]]

==References==
{{Reflist|33em}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Library of Parliament (Canada)}}
* [https://lop.parl.ca/sites/PublicWebsite/default/en_CA/ResearchPublications Publications of the Library of Parliament]
* [http://www.parl.gc.ca/common/index.asp?Language=E Parliament of Canada]

{{Parliament Hill}}
{{Legislative libraries}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1876 establishments in Canada]]
[[Category:Government buildings completed in 1876]]
[[Category:Legislative libraries]]
[[Category:Libraries in Ottawa]]
[[Category:Parliament of Canada buildings]]
[[Category:Thomas Fuller buildings]]
[[Category:Libraries established in 1876]]
[[Category:Federal government buildings in Ottawa]]