Dartford Library

Dartford / Regno Unito

Dartford Central Library and Museum is a library in the town centre of Dartford, Kent, England. The library was opened on 1 January 1916 by A. W. Smale, Chairman of the Dartford Urban District Council, and W. A. Ward, the Chairman of the Library Committee. Its first browsers were soldiers in World War I who were staying nearby in military hospitals, recovering from wounds received while serving in the trenches. Dartford Central Library was constructed with the aid of a grant from the philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie. It was designed by Thomas E. Tiffin AMICE, the then-Dartford Urban District Council surveyor, and built in Bath by Messrs H. Friday and Sons and Ling, using Portland and York stone. In 1937 the library was expanded over what was once the Dartford tin works. During the Second World War its cupola dome served as an air raid watchpost. In 2016 the library had a major refit and internal access created between it and Dartford Museum. The library also opened the Peter Blake Gallery for the display of works by local artists.Today, Dartford Library is open weekdays from 08:30 to 18:00, except Thursday when it opens until 20:00, and Saturdays 09:00 to 17:00. It is run by Kent County Council.

Dartford Borough Council

Dartford / Regno Unito

The Borough of Dartford is a local government district in the north-west of the county of Kent, England. Its council is based in the town of Dartford. It is part of the contiguous London urban area. It borders the borough of Gravesham to the east, Sevenoaks District to the south, the London Borough of Bexley to the west, and the Thurrock unitary authority in Essex to the north, across the River Thames. The borough was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Dartford, the Swanscombe Urban District, and part of the Dartford Rural District. According to the 2011 Census, its population was 97,365.