Good morning, everyone. Today we're going to look at the history of public libraries. As you might know, the first public libraries in the UK were established in the mid-nineteenth century, after the Public Libraries Act of 1850. However, it wasn't until the 1870s that they became truly widespread. One key figure was Andrew Carnegie, a wealthy industrialist who donated millions to build over 2,500 libraries worldwide. Interestingly, Carnegie's donations often came with conditions: local communities had to provide the land and commit to maintaining the library with public funds. This model greatly influenced library development in both the UK and the US.