Heywood Library Church Street/ Pinewood Street

In 1904 an application was made to Andrew Carnegie for funds to build a new public library. Until this point Heywood's public library facilities had consisted of two newsrooms housed in council offices. The initial donation was of £6,000, but was raised to £6,300 on a second application to cover extra costs. The Library was maintained by the addition of a penny rate levied under the terms of the Free Libraries Act. The site was considered somewhat unfavourable, being surrounded by "fair stalls with all their accompanying paraphernalia" and a row of dilapidated houses, both of which were thought to detract from the "beauty of the architecture." The building was one of Heywood's first major civic buildings and the opening was the occasion of a civic celebration, with a procession of the Library Committee and local police. A gold key was presented to Mr. Smith the Mayor by the architects and was used to open the library for the first time.