Commonwealth Library Centre, 1950

IDENTITY STATEMENT AREA

Reference code(s): ICS 68

Title: Commonwealth Library Centre, 1950

Date(s): 1950 - 1950

Level of description: Fond

Extent and medium of the unit of description: 1 file

CONTEXT AREA

Name of creator(s): Royal Empire Society. Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Administrative/Biographical history: The Royal Commonwealth Society was founded in 1868 as the Colonial Society. It was renamed the Royal Colonial Institute in 1870 and the Royal Empire Society in 1928. It adopted its current name in 1958. It is a pan-Commonwealth Non-Governmental Organisation, supported by a world-wide membership, working to inform and educate about the Commonwealth.
The RCS Library contains about 300,000 printed items and over 70,000 photographs. At the beginning of the 1990's, it appeared that the Society would be forced to break up and sell the collection. A £3 million appeal launched in 1992, saved the Library for the nation and enabled it to be moved to Cambridge University Library, where it remains on permanent deposit.

Archival history: The source of acquisition by ICS is not known.

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer:

CONTENT AND STRUCTURE AREA

Scope and content: Correspondence and papers on discussions between the Royal Empire Society and the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, London University on the proposed creation of a Commonwealth Library Centre, Jan-Sep 1950.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information:

Accruals:

System of arrangement: Chronological

CONDITIONS OF ACCESS AND USE AREA

Conditions governing access: A photocopying service is available at the discretion of the ICS Library staff. Copies are supplied solely for research or private study. Requests to publish, or quote from original material should be submitted to the Information Resources Manager.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Language/scripts of material: English

Physical characteristics:

Finding aids: List available in the ICS Library.

ALLIED MATERIALS AREA

Existence and location of originals:

Existence and location of copies:

Related units of description:

Publication note:

DESCRIPTION CONTROL AREA

Recorder's note:

Rules or conventions: Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions: February 2002

Interest: Black, Caribbean, Asian

Specific group:

Subjects

Information/library administration

Library collections

Political systems

Personal/Corporate names

Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Royal Empire Society

Places