Alexandria Library Company

The Alexandria Library Company was founded on July 24, 1794, at the house of John Wise for the purpose of providing reading material on a subscription basis. The following week, the members met next door in what is now the Assembly Room of Gatsby's Tavern to choose officers. The Rev. James Muir was elected president, Samuel Craig treasurer, and Edward Stabler secretary and librarian, all prominent Alexandrians. On January 9, 1799, the Alexandria Library Company was chartered by the General Assembly of Virginia.

Our 1801 catalog totaled 450 books and grew to 5,063 titles by 1858. More than 1,000 holdings were lost during the Civil War. Despite tumultuous times, our collection survived. In 1937, when Alexandria’s first public library, Kate Waller Barrett, was founded, the Alexandria Library Company contributed its collection.  

The Alexandria Library Company Collection is currently housed in the Local History/Special Collections (LH/SC) Branch at Barrett. To this day, the Alexandria Library Company appoints three of its members to serve on the Board of Directors of the city’s expanded library system. We also fund an Alexandria Library Company Summer Internship program in which a student of Library Science works with the LH/SC Branch Manager to digitize our early collection.

The Alexandria Library Company Speaker Series began in 1957 when the Company revived a tradition from our early days of presenting lectures. Every year, we invite a notable author, historian, or journalist to address topics of regional or national interest.

The Alexandria Library Company works with and provide grants to the Alexandria Library System. We are a 501(c)(3) organization, EIN: 51-0225226. 

If you are interested in supporting our organization or have any questions, email president@alexandrialibrarycompany.org