John Bewick Goldsbrough

Letters By Author

John Bewick Goldsbrough (1865 - 1938)

J.B. Goldsbrough acted as Assistant Chief Librarian of Belfast Public Libraries after the death of the previous Chief Librarian G.H. Elliott on 23 January 1917. “Appointed to discharge duties of Chief Librarian during the period of the war’ he continued writing letters to “the library men” until 1919. He was appointed to the position of Chief Librarian on 3 April 1919.

J.B. Goldsbrough was born on 9 May 1865 in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. In 1881, aged fifteen, he was listed as an ‘Assistant Librarian’ living with his parents in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. He joined the staff of Belfast Public Libraries on 27 September 1888 and was promoted to Second Assistant in 1891. He married Elizabeth Smyth and in the 1901 Census was living in Fitzwilliam Street with his Co. Antrim born wife and in-laws including his six year old nephew Hubert who is mentioned in his letters. He had two sons-Geoffrey born in 1902 and Eric born in 1907. J.B. Goldsbrough resigned ‘on the grounds of age and service’ on 31 August 1936 and died two years later on 3 February 1938.

Correspondence from the Chief Librarian is included in the collections of those he was writing to.


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