History
In the 19th century, a Public Library boom hit the United Kingdom. The town of Preston wanted a grand museum and library for its inhabitants. Since 1850, locals had held fund-raising events to get enough money to build a museum and public library. In 1877, a Preston lawyer called Edmund Robert Harris finally made the dream of Preston into a reality. He left instructions in his will with a sum of £300,000 to establish a trust that would provide funds to support the creation of several organisations in Preston including a library, museum and art gallery. The trust would work with Preston Council. In 1879, the first Preston lending library was set up in the Town Hall basement, while a public museum was set up on Cross Street, opening 1st May 1880. The popularity of this made the council decide to make a purpose built building to house the Public Library and Museum. Building work officially started on the museum in 1882 during the Preston Guild and it officially opened in 1893.
Read more about this topic: Harris Museum
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