The Development of an Australian Academic Library: Dixson Library, University of New England, 1938-1973

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to trace the origins and development of the Dixson Library of the New England University College (1938 - 1954) and later of the University of New England (1954 - 1973). The history of university libraries has been claimed to hold greater interest than that of other libraries because it reflects the history of higher education 'like the impression struck from a coin, the exact image revealed with exorable precision' In the case of the Dixson Library, influences outside the domain of higher education - associated, for example, with the regional location of the University - have played an important role, but the Library's history is nonetheless revealed most fully in the context of university developments. The Library was established to serve the educational programme of the University of New England, and it has been, to a significant extent, a microcosm of the University. Its fortunes, like those of university libraries in general, have been intimately related to the problems and changes which confronted its parent institution. Among the forces which have shaped the development of the Dixson Library, it is important to identify those which are distinctive to the University of New England, as well as those which are common to Australian universities as a whole, from the 1930s to the 1970s.