Introduction
The Watkinson Library is an endowed library of approximately 200,000 volumes consisting of rare books, manuscripts, and a number of special collections. It was originally founded in 1858 as a "Library of Reference" for the community and beyond in downtown Hartford in the will of Hartford philanthropist, David Watkinson. Operating on its endowment, the Watkinson eventually did not have sufficient means to support its mission. This led to a decision by the Trustees of the Library to ally the Watkinson with Trinity College, and it joined the College in 1952 in the newly constructed library building.
One unusual aspect of the arrangement with Trinity is that the Watkinson remains a private library open to the general public and available to all who require its resources. In addition, it now serves as the special collections library for the College, housing Trinity's special collections and the College Archives in addition to its own collections.
Because the Watkinson was founded as a research library, it has holdings that cover the full scope of human intellectual activity. In significant measure the quality of the collections is due to the efforts of its first Librarian, James Hammond Trumbull, a distinguished bibliographer and philologist with encyclopedic interests, who established the Library on a firm footing with a broad range of purchases. At the same time, through the years, the Library has been fortunate in the many donors who have contributed toward building the collections. Without their generosity, the Watkinson would not be able to provide the breadth and depth of collections that characterize it today.
Exhibitions and Open Houses
Exhibitions are a regular feature of the Watkinson Library. The Library also offers open house programs during the year with speakers on a variety of topics. Both exhibitions and open houses are free and open to the public and are advertised through the media.
