Look inside historic Merseyside library before it’s transformed into cafe

Look inside historic Merseyside library before it's transformed into cafe

There were originally 660 Carnegie libraries in the UK and Ireland

Take a look inside a historic Merseyside building before it is transformed.

It has been a long road for the Carnegie Library in Crosby after it was shut down by Sefton Council in 2013. The hope is to turn the library into office space, a digital hub, and a family restaurant. The developers hope to "promote economic growth and tourism" in Sefton.

The renovation is being done in connection with popular café Moose Coffee which announced last year that they will be taking over part of the building.

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A post on the official Moose Facebook page in June said: " As we know for lots of us in Crosby it’s been years since we’ve seen inside. Final layout decisions being made, the original green tiles being brought back to life, work starting in earnest soon."

The ECHO was given access to the building this week and the pictures show the beauty the library still has to offer. Since the news it would be developed was announced there has been a strong reaction from local people in Crosby who want to see the building returned to its former glory.

Crosby’s Carnegie Library is one of 2,509 libraries across the world built between 1883 and 1929 with money donated by Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. There were originally 660 Carnegie libraries in the UK and Ireland.