Founded in August 1813, the Library had difficulty obtaining books and also had to make up for the lack of space. A problem solved in 1924. Today, the entity celebrates the 110th anniversary of its first stone and the 210th of its existence.
The proclamation that circulated through the dusty streets of Santiago, August 19, 1813 , he said: “The first step people take to be wise is to equip themselves with large libraries. For this reason, the government does not omit the expense or the resources to form a national library” (General history of Chile, Diego Barros Arana). At that time, while in the south the young nation was fighting for its independence, the government junta, led by the hero Jose Miguel Carrera He shaped the first institutions of the Republic. One was the National Library.
The proclamation, included in the pages of El Monitor Araucano (the second newspaper founded in Chile), as well as the start of the Library in formal terms, also called on the citizens themselves to collaborate for the formation of the collections.
“For this a patriotic subscription of books is open, and models of Machines for the arts where everyone, by offering an object, or money for its purchase, can really say ‘This is the part of which I contribute to the opinion, and to the present and future happiness of my country’ » . This, because as Barros Arana explains, There were two not minor problems in acquiring books when the institution was founded: “the scarcity of money and the lack of bookstores where to buy them”. This is why the inhabitants themselves were asked for books.
And not only that. Not having its own building, the National Library began to operate under the attic of the Royal University of San Felipe , and considered the volumes of the house of studies -five thousand, according to Barros-, which, in turn, came from earlier times. “Almost all had formed the bulk of the library that the Jesuits possessed at the maximum college of Santiago at the time of their expulsion, in 1767.”
In charge of the new institution was placed Salas Manual, an exceptional patriotic leader, with participation in the First National Congress (as deputy for Itata) and key in the so-called Freedom of the Wombs Law, of 1811, which freed all children of slaves born in Chile. Although Salas did not start in charge, it was Agustín Olavarrieta, who took over on an interim basis.
Closed between 1814 and 1817, during the period of the Spanish Reconquest, he returned to work after the triumph of Chacabuco and the advent of the so-called Patria Nueva. From there, the idea of building his own building began to project.
Today, the institution celebrates 110 years of life strictly speaking, since the laying of the first stone of the building, and 210 since its foundation. For this, it will have a series of activities, such as a lecture given by the last winner of the National History Prize, the historian Rafael Sagredo.
“The Library was born almost at the same time as Chile. Today we remember the idea with which the library was built, that it was a joint effort because many people pledged to donate. It was a very civic foundation, ”he underlines on the phone with Cult. loneliness embraces, the current director of the entity.
Abarca points out that at the moment the bicentenary institution is in a process where it seeks to regain its rhythm after the forced closure of the pandemic . “We are in a hurry to reopen,” he said. For this reason, from this Thursday the 17th they will have a series of initiatives to commemorate their anniversary.
“We will open a service, information and catalog room on the Alameda side of the library. We had already opened an exhibition hall and another for temporary exhibitions, but the Library lacked an information space at the main entrance”. And, in addition, he comments that they are recovering the café and the bookstore that existed until a few years ago.
Even more innovation is planned for 2025 . The replacement of the computer sector -in a glass cube, in the Marta Cruz-Coke Room- by another function. “We want to take it out and reformulate all this space to serve the public. Today, everyone walks around with their mobile phone with the Internet, so the annoying space for writing is no longer necessary. It’s like a closed media,” says Abarca. Of course, he adds that the idea is also to continue the activities of the National Digital Library and Chilean Memory, two outstanding sites of the Library in its history and which have linked it to the 21st century.
The building where the National Library is located, next to the Santa Lucía metro, in the square formed by Alameda (south), Miraflores (east), Mac Iver (west) and Moneda (north) was built in several stages, in a project led by the architect Gustavo García del Postigo, which envisaged bringing together the Library, the National Archives and the National Historical Museum in one place. However, only the first two ended up being housed.
In this block, once stood the convent of the Claras sisters. The first stone of the construction was laid on August 24, 1913, in an act chaired by the President of the Republic, Ramón Barros Luco, seconded by the Minister of Public Instruction, Fanor Paredes; other members of his cabinet and the director of the National Library, Carlos Silva Cruz. The building was not inaugurated until 1924, with Arturo Alessandri Palma in government. And we no longer needed to ask people for donations.
Historian Rafael Sagredo’s lecture will be broadcast on the Library’s social networks from 11:30 a.m. on Thursday 17, before the respective inauguration of the information and catalog room.
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Source: Latercera
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