Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts
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| Established | 27 October 1972 |
|---|---|
| Location | Hobart, Tasmania |
| Type | Museum library |
| Key holdings | Gould's Sketchbook of fishes |
| Collections | Georgian, Victorian, Australiana and Tasmanian history |
| Collection size | 11,000 |
| Founder | Henry Allport |
| Curator | Caitlin Sutton |
| Owner | Public |
The Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts is a museum library in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. Managed by Libraries Tasmania, it is located inside the State Library of Tasmania building. It represents one of the largest collections of Tasmanian colonial and pre-Colonial life, and also holds a collection of rare British and European porcelain, furniture and books. It was opened in 1972 and entrance is free to the public.
The Allport family settled in Tasmania in 1831. A respected family of British lawyers, their family seat of Cedar Court, in Aldridge is today a Grade II listed house. Joseph Allport was born as the youngest son of William Allport, and his wife Hannah Curzon, his second marriage. Hannah ran a school from the house, where John Glover was drawing teacher. In 1831, Joseph Allport emigrated to Tasmania and settled in Broadmarsh, Tasmania.[1]
His last male descendant, Henry Allport, died in 1965 and left the family home of Cedar Court, Sandy Bay, his extensive personal collections and that of his family, and an endowment for the continued growth of the collection, and establishment of a library. In 1972 the collection was moved to an environment controlled storage inside the State Library of Tasmania's 11 story tower. It was officially opened on 27 October 1972, by Lady Alexandra Hasluck, wife of the Governor-General.[1]
Management
The Allport Library is managed by Libraries Tasmania, under a management committee consisting of two trustees of Henry Allport's will, one seat nominated by the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, one seat reserved for an expert in rare art and books appointed by the Minister, and a representative of the Department of Education Tasmania. It is governed under the Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts Agreement Act 1966[2]
