Women’s Libraries

The following is a list of feminist libraries around the world that are dedicated to women.

This list is a work in progress. If you find a non-working link, or if you know of a library that should be added to this list, please let me know. I appreciate your help in making this list as comprehensive as possible. Thank you!

— Nicole Melanson

 

Biblioteca Francesca Bonnemaison (Barcelona, Spain)

The first library exclusively for women in Europe.

 

Biblioteca Italiana delle Donne (Bologna, Italy)

Biblioteca Italiana delle Donne was born in the late 1970s as part of Centro di Documentazione, Iniziativa e Ricerca delle Donne, as a result of a project developed by Associazione Orlando, an association of women active in the research and politics fields, who established this autonomous institution to promote both the culture of gender difference and the female public presence.

 

Bibliothèque Marguerite Durand (BMD) (Paris, France)

French feminist library dedicated entirely to women, begun with the donation of Durand’s personal collection.

 

The Feminist Library (Beirut, Lebanon)

We believe in the importance of a feminist library being open to the public. We invite anyone to come in to read and to borrow from our wide selection of books, including fiction, autobiography, sexuality, women’s labor, spirituality, history and activism. In addition to our books by and about women in West Asia and North Africa, we are deliberate in including a selection of books by women of color, especially queer women of color.

 

The Free Black Woman’s Library (mobile pop-up, USA)

The Free Black Women’s Library, is an interactive Black Feminist mobile trading library and interactive biblio installation that features a collection of 2000 books written by Black women. The library is committed to centering and celebrating the voices of Black Women in literature.

 

Glasgow Women’s Library (Glasgow, UK)

Glasgow Women’s Library is the only Accredited Museum in the UK dedicated to women’s lives, histories and achievements, with a lending library, archive collections and innovative programmes of public events & learning opportunities.

 

Jessie Street National Women’s Library (Sydney, Australia)

Jessie Street National Women’s Library is a unique specialist library dedicated to the preservation of Australian women’s work, words and history. The Library was established in 1989 and is named after Jessie Street, a lifelong campaigner for women’s rights, the peace movement and the elimination of discrimination against Aboriginal people.

The Library’s charter is to collect, preserve and promote knowledge and understanding of the cultural heritage of all women; social justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; international friendship and peace.

 

Kadin Eserleri (Istanbul, Turkey)

Women’s Works Library and Information Center Foundation

 

Vancouver Women’s Library (Vancouver, Canada)

The Vancouver Women’s Library aims to champion women’s culture by continuing the legacy of women run presses.

* PERMANENTLY CLOSED

 

The Women’s Library (Sydney, Australia)

Books by, for, and about women, run by volunteers

The Women’s Library was created in 1992 by a group of women passionate about providing literary resources and a safe space for women.

 

The Women’s Library (London, UK)

The Women’s Library collection tells the story of the campaign for women’s rights and women’s equality from the beginnings of the suffrage movement to the present day.