Special Collections

Joseph Livesey was from Preston and was one of the early teetotal pioneers. This collection contains important documents pertaining to the Temperance Movement.

This collection contains records and papers from the Jeremiah Horrocks Observatory in Preston. You can explore sketches, notes and papers by George James Gibbs from the 1920's and 1930's.

The Illustrated books collection contains items from the 18th Century up to present day, all chosen for the quality of their illustrations. The items represent a wide variety of techniques and stypes from woodcut prints, lithography and photography. Notable illustrators include George Cruikshank, Arthur Rackham, Gustave Dore and Salvador Dali and more contemporary artists such as Quentin Blake and Judith Kerr.

The Design Collection is a unique and valuable collection of books, magazines and periodicals. It's intended to inform research and provide inspiration to new artists. It covers many areas of art and design, including fashion and textiles, typography, graphic design, product catalogues and photography.

This collection contains late Victorian texts relating to British and Irish political history. It was donated by the Wainwright Conservative Club in Blackpool.

This small collection of items relates to the Shepherd Street Mission established in Preston by the Band of Hope in 1876. The mission worked with homeless children and adults in the local area. One of its original aims was to help children to emigrate. This collection comprises mostly committee minutes and newspaper reports on the Mission’s work. It also includes rules for running the children’s homes and a small collection of images. 

We have a collection of William Woodruff's books, an important global historian whose works are still relevant today.