Town Hall and the Thrissur Public Library: Growth, Evolution and Legacy
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| Town Hall, Thrissur Public library, 123.com |
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| trichurpubliclibrary.org |
A town without a library or a temple is like an arid land, for these institutions enrich both intellectual life and spiritual experience. As Sir Richard Steele famously wrote, “Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.” The Thrissur Public Library, one of the oldest libraries in South India, was founded during the late 19th century when Thrissur was part of the princely State of Cochin. Its establishment was the result of visionary thinking by Diwan Sankunni Menon (1820–1881), who initiated the concept of a public library in 1872 during his tenure as Diwan from 1860 to 1879.
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| Dewan R.K. Shanmugam Chettiar, dinamani.com |
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| Dewan of Cochin. Sankunni Menon Facebook.com. |
Due to limited space, the early library began functioning inside St. Mary’s College. Sensing its importance and the lack of public access to print materials—books and magazines being expensive and rare—Sankunni Menon convened a meeting of 21 young men to explore ways of maximizing the usefulness of the library. Their discussions led to the creation of a public reading room, a pioneering step that democratized access to knowledge at a time when printed literature remained unaffordable to most middle and lower-middle-class families. For more than six decades, the library functioned in this modest setting, gradually growing in collection and popularity.
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| Town Hall, Thrissur Public library, Kerala en.wikipedia.org |
A major transformation came with the construction of the Thrissur Town Hall, built during the dewanship of R. K. Shanmugam Chettiar, who later became independent India’s first Finance Minister. Erected in 1938 to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of King George V, the Town Hall was designed in elegant Victorian style, with a large portico and well-kept lawns. Upon its completion, the Maharajah shifted the public reading room to the first floor of the Town Hall in 1939, providing a spacious 1,200-sq-ft area. The state also funded the move and supplied timber to craft long reading tables and sturdy chairs. The Town Hall soon became a landmark of the city, with a statue of statesman K. Karunakaran now standing at its entrance.
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| Location. Thrissur city, Kerala .mapsofindia.com |
Post-independence, growing readership made space inadequate once again. Under Chief Minister C. Achutha Menon, the library expanded into the upper floor of the building. However, by the early 2000s, the need for modernization was evident. In 2004, the library underwent a major facelift and introduced the Central Library of Science and Technology (CLST), offering extensive resources in science, engineering, medicine, and related disciplines.
Thrissur Public Library also holds the distinction of being the first computerized public library in Kerala (1996), supported by funds allocated by K. Karunakaran. Plans for a dedicated children’s wing further reflect its commitment to nurturing young minds.
Today, the library stands as a testament to enlightened governance—by Dewans, Maharajahs, and later political leaders—who recognized that “access to knowledge is the supreme act of civilization,” and ensured that Thrissur had a vibrant, ever-growing public library at its heart.
https://navrangindia.blogspot.com/2019/06/historical-town-hall-and-thrissur.html
https://www.keralatourism.org/destination/town-hall-thrissur/384/
