Readers’ Guide

Readers’ Guide

Hereford Cathedral’s Library & Archives are housed in the New Library Building to the south-west of the Cathedral.

Access is via the side entrance which can be found in Palace Yard, directly opposite the Pilgrim’s Progress Bookshop. Please press the ‘CALL’ button to the left of the door. Once you are inside the building, the reading room is on the second floor and accessible by stairs or lift.

Tuesdays: 10 am – 4pm

Thursdays: 10am – 4pm

Other times by prior arrangement.

 
Reading Room

The reading room is freely available to anyone during opening hours for private study and consultation of modern collections and finding aids. It is equipped for the use of personal computers, and has a microfilm reader, photocopying facilities, disabled access and photographic service.

The historic collections consist of all the medieval manuscript books, early printed (pre-1801) books, some nineteenth-century works, manuscript and printed music, as well as prints, drawings and photographic materials. Requests to consult historic material must be made well in advance.

The Cathedral Archives consist of the records of the Dean & Chapter documenting the history of the cathedral and its considerable property throughout the county from the early Middle Ages until the present day. The collection includes title deeds, manorial and ecclesiastical court records, minutes, accounts, maps, architectural drawings and personal papers.

NB: The Library does not hold archives of the Bishop, which are available with the other diocesan records at Herefordshire County Record Office.

The modern reading room houses the modern lending and reference library. It is mainly theological, but also rich in local history, general and church history, biography, decorative arts, architecture and music.  Membership of the library is free and members can borrow six books for up to two months from the Lending Library.

New books are being acquired all the time.  To see new additions, please click on the link below:

New Books

The catalogue of the medieval manuscript books is available in print as Catalogue of the Manuscripts of Hereford Cathedral Library by R.A.B. Mynors and R.M. Thomson, (Cambridge, 1993).

Printed works can be found on the on-line catalogue:

http://asp.bibits.no/hereford-cathedral/wssearch.asp

This catalogue contains most of the books printed after 1850. We are currently cataloging all those works printed before this date, and the records are being updated regularly.

The archive catalogue is not yet available on-line, but can be accessed in person in the reading room.

For further information, please contact:

Hereford Cathedral Library & Archives

Hereford Cathedral

Hereford

HR1 2NG

Tel: 01432-374225/6

Fax: 01432-374220