International Civic Library

The International Civic Library of Bordighera is at 52 via Romana.

International Civic Library
Biblioteca Civica Internazionale
International Civic Library, Bordighera
Location	Bordighera, Italy
Type	National library
Established	1910
Collection
Items collected	Books, newspapers, magazines, databases, collection of digital pictures of Bordighera.
Size	60.000 books, 950 old digitized photos of the Victorian Bordighera.
Access and use
Access requirements	Free access. Membership required for loans.
Other information
Website	www.bordighera.it/cultura/biblioteca_civica

History

Entry of the International Civic Library

The first library of Bordighera was founded by the British in 1880 and was in the city’s Anglican Church.^[1]

In 1910, the British community decided to build a dedicated library on Via Romana to host a growing collection. Funds were gathered by Clarence Bicknell who designed a Victorian stone building with a façade embellished by a semi-circular portico, supported by six columns, and made even more beautiful by the presence of a wisteria now centenary.

After the Second World War, the library was bought by the city of Bordighera and restored in 1985 by the Genoese architect Gianfranco Franchini, particularly known for his work with Renzo Piano at the Centre Pompidou of Paris. The library boasts the title of "International" because it has a collection of about 40,000 volumes in Italian, 20,000 in English, 6,000 in French and 3,000 in German. The library also has a collection of about 950 old, digitized photos of the Victorian Bordighera.^[2]