The Australian Subscription Library – the country’s first – was established in 1826. For nearly two hundred years, the collection has grown until it now contains over five million items, including the journals from Captain Cook’s first expedition voyage. The facility also had several names until it became the State Library of New South Wales in 1975. The impressive Mitchell Building was added in 1910 based on a Neo-classical design by Walter Liberty Vernon. The expansion’s namesake is David Scott Mitchell. He was the project’s benefactor and also donated his extensive collection of Australian books and manuscripts.
