Today is the day that Darlington Borough Councillors have to decide the future fate of this iconic institution which was gifted to the people of the town to be used as a library forever, by the Pease family. For financial reasons, the cabinet members on our council decided, it is in the best interests of the town that the building should no longer be used for this purpose. All the members of DBC will vote to decide whether or not the building which is in Crown Street, will cease to be a library and the books and archives and art collection split up and relocated in various places around town. It is thought that the ruling party will win this vote and therefore the library’s fate will be sealed. To me, this library in this building is an important part of the heritage of my town and I want to see it stay intact and go from strength to strength. I don’t welcome this detrimental move at all and I am not alone in that. I believe this place is the soul of the town and to lose it would be to lose part of our Quaker history and dilute our sense of identity and deny future generations their hometown pride.

Photograph by Peter Giroux