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Book Barn (Bristol UK) warehouse closes, contents free to scavengers

What happens when you decide you can't afford the rent on the warehouse you use for your used books operation?

photo credit: Flickr user "Libby", used with permission (creative commons)

Trym Tales: Free Clearout at Bristol's Book Barn (Tues Feb 24 2009)

Spent a happy morning today with some younger clan members helping the The Book Barn (Central Trading Estate, Bath Road, BS4 3EH) clear its stock of several thousand books, thanks to a heads up via Twitter.

The Barn is a giant warehouse and is closing down. Having moved some of its more valuable stock to its North Somerset depot, the monster book seller is now literally giving away all its remaining books - as long as you're prepared to rummage.

The Daily Mail has more photos

Bookworms came armed with bags and boxes to grab as many titles as they could physically carry

'I've seen people backing cars and vans into the warehouse so they can stock up.

'One couple even came in a campervan and I think they slept overnight and then crammed as many books as they could into their van and drove off.'

The contents of the aircraft hangar-sized warehouse are a librarian's worst nightmare, with the books piled willy-nilly and not separated according to subject or genre.

Iowa 2008 flood damages to libraries

The historic 2008 flooding in Iowa damaged many libraries and their collections.  The State Library of Iowa has collected reports of flooding and recovery status, from which this is excerpted (as of August 5 2008):

Several Iowa libraries were seriously damaged by flooding in 2008:  Cedar Rapids Public Library's main building in downtown CR; the National Czech and Slovak Library and Museum located in the Czech Village in CR; and the New Hartford Public Library.  The music and art libraries at the University of Iowa were also affected by floods.  The small book collection (1,000 volumes) at the African American Historical Museum and Cultural Center of Iowa in Cedar Rapids was completely lost in the flood.

Monetary donations are welcome and may be sent to the following:

Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation 500 First Street Southeast Cedar Rapids, IA. 52401

Friends of New Hartford Public Library P O Box 292 New Hartford, IA. 50660

National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library 30 Sixteenth Avenue Southwest Cedar Rapids, IA. 52401-5904

African American Historical Museum of Iowa P.O. Box 1626 Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-1626

The following public libraries had water damage ranging from mild to fairly serious:  Chelsea, Creston, Elkader, Iowa Falls, Rockford, St. Charles, and Waterloo. Although there was water in the basement of the University of Iowa Main Library in Iowa City, flood waters did not reach the library.