In the third instalment of her blog series on The London Library and The Victorians, Helen O’Neill, our Archive, Heritage & Development Librarian, takes a look at the links between The London Library and a distinguished architectural dynasty founded by Sir George Gilbert Scott, the leading proponent of the Gothic Revival.
Gilbert Scott Sr joined the Library in December 1873. He was at the peak of his career - his astonishing Midland Hotel at St Pancras had been formally opened in May that year and he had been recently knighted following the 1872 opening of another of his most celebrated designs - the Albert Memorial. His Library membership was seconded by his architectural son who joined the Library a year before his father.
