1840 - First Annual General Meeting held on 1st June.
- 2 parcels of land bought in Collins St, one later sold to fund construction of a building
1843 - 2 storey brick building 'with the noblest edifice in the province' opened, Melbourne Mechanics'
Institute and School of Arts moves into its permanent home.
1844 - Faced insolvency due to Depression.
1845 - The nucleus of Melbourne's first permanent museum, a glass case was installed near the Reading Room.
1846 - Melbourne Mechanics'Institute and School of Arts Reading Room holds every leading journal published in Britain and Australia.
- A £300 grant from the Legislative Council allows the Melbourne Mechanics' Institute
and School of Arts to begin a collection of Aboriginal Relics.
- Although a subscription library, general public admission is possible with a small fee.
1851 - The discovery of gold in Ballarat led to 'interruptions to which all the pursuits of our community have been subjected' as members head out to try their luck.
1853 - Membership is overwhelmingly middle class. Only 1 in 20 members is a mechanic or
artisan - the 'upper strata' of the working class.
- Redmond Barry persuades the Victorian government to allot funds for the first free
library in Australia.
1865 - Considering the significant change in the membership, the Committee seek to change the name to reflect the subscribers, such as the Literary Club or the Athenaeum.
1872 - New additions of a hall and façade are begun.
1873 - Members voted to change the name to the Melbourne Athenaeum.
- Realia donated to the National Museum.
- Growing membership.
1886 - Building upgrades including the placement of the Statue of Athena in the niche
of the façade.
1890s - The Great Crash, the decade long Depression, means membership begins to decline.
- Educational Lectures cease.
1896 - The first film shown in Melbourne premiers at the Melbourne Athenaeum.
1904 - Frederick McCubbin's triptych The Pioneer exhibited in the gallery.
1906 - Premiere of The Kelly Gang, the first feature film in the world.
1910 - Upper Hall transformed into an Art Gallery - 'the best lit gallery in Melbourne.'
- Moving pictures shown in the 'home of movies in Melbourne.'
- Theatre licence granted for 'any interlude, tragedy, opera, comedy, stage play, farce,
burletta, melodrama, pantomime or any stage dancing, tumbling or feats of
horsemanship.'
1913 - Renovations of library sees memberships begin to climb steadily until the Great
Depression of the 1930s.
1929 - Athenaeum Theatre screens the first 'talkies' in Australia. The Jazz Singer begins a year long season.
1930 - Lifts installed and are still in use today.
- Re-institution of Educational Lectures after 40 year break.
1932 - 1937 - Membership declines due to the expansion of the suburbs with the associated openings of small lending libraries.
1937 - Library reclassified and reorganised along modern principles. The Library and Reading Rooms are joined, facilities for all classes of reader are provided and no book is placed out of reach.
1942 - Lectures are suspended due to World War 2 'black-outs'.
1943 - American literature introduced as British literature proved too hard to procure during World War 2.
1950 - Simplified Dewy Decimal Classification system is introduced.
1951 - Melbourne Chess Club is evicted by Court Order to make room for book storage area.
1952 - Peak membership of 7,579 reached.
- Athenaeum Library committee actively involved with the Australian Book Fair Council and the Library Week Movement.
1956 - While a boon to most of Melbourne, The Olympic Games lead to declining membership at the library due to increasing television ownership.
1957 - Annual fees (demanded by the increase in State Land Tax) and other household increases such as the public transport fare increase lead to further decline in membership.
1958 - Surveys of discontinuing members indicate such things as the cost of public transport, parking difficulties in the city, suburban municipal libraries and television were the causes of falling membership.
1959 - A Gramophone Record Library is established with lunchtime recitals.
1960 - The closure of commercial libraries the Myer Library and Mullens Library see slight increase in Athenaeum Library memberships.
1963 - The Board of Inquiry into Library Services in Victoria, and its subsequent Jungwirth Report published in 1964 recognise the 'good services' of the Athenaeum Library but recommends State funds for public service libraries should be directed to improving the free municipal library services and not 'private' services.
1965 - Pilot branch library developed.
1968 - Forest Hill branch of Athenaeum Library opened in October. The new building is plagued with woes such as numerous floodings.
1971 - Opening hours are reduced by an hour each evening in an attempt to reduce costs.
1972 - 1975 - The Theosophical Society rents the former Gallery space.
- Forest Hill continues to grow until the 1974 opening of the Nunawading Municipal library and Nunawading High School, which is located next to the Forest Hill branch.
1977 - 'Live' theatre returns to the Athenaeum with the association of the Melbourne Theatre Company. The former art gallery is converted into a smaller theatre 'Athenaeum 2'.
- Membership to city branch continues to decline as Melbourne is decentralised.
- Forest Hill Branch is closed.
1981 - The Athenaeum building is entered into the Register of the National, Australian Heritage Commission.
1991 - A grant is obtained to refurbish and upgrade the heritage listed building.
1997 - The Athenaeum 2 becomes the Comedy Club.
Today - The Athenaeum Library regards itself as 'Melbourne's best kept secret'. Currently, in addition to offering over 30,000 volumes for loan, the library also hosts Author Talks and Lectures on a range of topics.
Picture credit:
Wilmore, A 1862, Mechanics' Institution, Melbourne, Sands, Kenny & Co, Melbourne, viewed 30 April 2012,
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