Historic England
Chorlton Library in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, was built in 1914 to the designs of Henry Price, Manchester City Architect. It was funded by a £5000 donation from the Scottish-American steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, equivalent to about £606,000 as at 2023.[1][a]Calculated using the retail price index.[2] It is one of 660 such libraries he funded in Britain.[3]
The library was designated a Grade II listed buildingStructure of particular architectural and/or historic interest deserving of special protection. in 2013, in recognition of its largely intact Edwardian Baroque architecture.[1]
Architecture
Manchester City Council
Chorlton Library is built of red brick with Portland stone dressings, on a triangular plot of land. The single-storey structure has a flat roof, with a large octagonal dome rising above and behind the front elevation.[1]
The library was closed in 2024 for substantial restoration, which included the removal of a false floor to expose the dome in the library entrance along with the mezzanine gallery – both of which had been concealed for decades – and the removal of internal walls to reveal the original octagonal interior of the atrium space. It was reopened in April 2025.[4]