On 7 November, the Bibliophiles had the immense privilege of visiting the Bishopsgate Institute Library. We were given a wonderful tour by Special Collections and Archives Manager Stef Dickers.
Stef took us around the sprawling Victorian building to show us snippets of their incredible collections, which reflect London history, feminist and women’s history, protests and campaigning, LGBTQ+ history and Labour and socialist history.
We found the stories of communities of people who have historically been marginalised – migrants, the LGBTQ+ community, women. You get the sense that these collections have so much emotional significance for many people and therefore very important to collect. They reflect the lives of extraordinary ordinary people, a history from below.
Some highlights included placards from last years’ women’s march, a Trump toy in a cage and a suffragette’s sash to name a few!
Images from @stefdickers on Twitter, posted with permission.
