Message posted on behalf of Eleanor Gawne, Head of Archive and Library.

The Caird Library, National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, will close at 16.45 on 
Saturday 20 December 2008, and reopen in late spring/early summer 2009, due 
to the redevelopment of the Museum’s South West Wing. We will inform you of 
the reopening date of the Library, likely to be spring/early summer 2009, as 
soon as this is confirmed. Please see below for further information on library 
services during this time. This notice is on the museum's website (see 
http://www.nmm.ac.uk/researchers/) and will go on other websites and 
listservs, and circulated to relevant institutions and individuals. It would be 
much appreciated if you are able to forward this message to anyone you know 
who uses the Library regularly, who may not see the museum's website.  

We are sorry for the inconvenience this will undoubtedly cause in the short 
term, but the long-term gains will be immeasurable. The South West Wing 
project will provide entirely new, modern and extended library provision and 
vastly increase the proportion of the Museum’s paper-based collections of all 
sorts readily available to readers and users at all levels.

We look forward to seeing you all in late spring 2009 when the Library reopens.

---------------------------------------------

Caird Library, National Maritime Museum, Greenwich – temporary closure due to 
move of collections for building of Sammy Ofer Wing

With plans progressing on the £35 million redevelopment of the museum, to 
include a modern research and reading room and improved storage for the 
paper-based collections, the Caird Library will close to all users on Saturday 20 
December 2008. The Library will reopen in late spring/early summer 2009.

General enquiries will continue to be handled by the E-Library, Monday to 
Friday, 13.30-15.30, telephone +44 (0)20 8312 6516. Although staff cannot 
undertake extensive research, we will endeavour to advise about the archive 
and library collections during this period. Please contact [log in to unmask] or 
[log in to unmask] . We will provide a copying service (photocopying or 
digital scans) for master’s certificates and crew lists only during this period, as 
most of the collections will be in transit and not accessible for copying until 
after the move.

We shall publicise the Caird Library’s reopening date as soon as we can. When 
we reopen, the service provision will be revised: the Caird Library will then be 
open by appointment Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and the first 
Saturday of every month. Information on how to make an appointment and 
how to order items in advance will be published soon. Please consult the 
Library’s website for the latest information http://www.nmm.ac.uk/library.

To find out more about the Sammy Ofer Wing development, please see our 
website, which is updated regularly http://www.nmm.ac.uk/about/sammy-ofer-
wing/ 
If you have any comments or feedback on the proposed development, please 
see ‘Tell us what you think’ on the pages above.

Eleanor Gawne
Head of Archive and Library