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| The Collection > History |
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| History of the Collection in Plymouth |
William Cotton MA FSA (1794-1863) gave the collection to the three towns in 1853 'for the purpose of Amusement and instruction by the inhabitants of the Towns of Plymouth, Stonehouse and Devonport and their vicinity'.The majority of the collection was given in 1853 during the lifetime of William Cotton III with the remaining items which he had retained for his own enjoyment bequeathed after his death in 1863. The Collection was deposited with the Plymouth Proprietary Library then located in Cornwall Street, Plymouth. A new room had to be built to house the collection at a cost of £1,000, where it remained until 1916 when it was transferred to the new main City Museum & Art Gallery founded in 1910. In 1915 the collection was formally acquired by the Corporation of Plymouth under the Plymouth Corporation Act and under terms agreed with the Committee of the Plymouth Proprietary Library, the former guardians. The central purpose was that the public should enjoy as fully as possible the benefaction of the collection. The permanent display was finally opened in 1918 and it remained in this form until the second World War when it was removed to a place of safety outside of Plymouth. 
It was partially returned for the centenary in 1953, but it was not until some three years later that the collection was returned in its entirety. At this time two galleries on the ground floor of the main building were devoted to the Cottonian Collection. It remained there until 1990, when it was removed to the modern gallery on the first floor of the gallery, where it is today.In 1983 a fire nearly destroyed the collection, though luck played its part here too, and damage was limited. One of the major effects was smoke damage resulting in a long programme of conservation, including repair to the spines and covers of the books. |
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