Free and Public

‘Reading this compelling account of Carnegie’s philanthropy, I realise many of the libraries I frequented as child and adult (Barry, Bridgend, Cathays, Merthyr, Rogerstone) were established as a consequence of his benevolence. Ralph Griffiths testifies to the built legacy whilst offering fascinating glimpses of the bustling world of Edwardian Wales.’
-Chris Williams, Head of the College of Arts, Celtic Studies and Social Sciences, University College Cork

‘This study highlights Andrew Carnegie’s life and generous philanthropy enabling the construction of free libraries across Wales in the early twentieth century. These important public buildings have had a lasting impact on townscapes, and their establishment was of enduring educational and cultural benefit to the people of Wales.’
-Professor Emerita Nancy Edwards, Bangor University, and Chair of RCAHMW

‘A fascinating, authoritative, meticulously researched, accessible and richly illustrated work. In highlighting the significance and legacy of Carnegie’s philanthropy in Wales and the varied responses to it, Griffiths’s valuable and important study brings to life a much-neglected aspect of Wales’s modern social and cultural history and its built heritage.’
-Emeritus Professor Bill Jones, Cardiff University