Alberta

Alberta's Legislature Library was established in 1906. The Library was moved to its present site in the Legislature Building in Edmonton during the latter part of 1911, shortly before the official opening of the Building in 1912. Prior to the creation of a separate archives facility in 1963, the Library served as the provincial archives as well as Alberta's parliamentary library.  Unique in Canada, Alberta has a Legislature Library that is located in a Legislature Building.  Former Speaker Gerry Amerongen recalled in a 2002 interview: "when I first got in, the building used to be called the 'Legislative Building'.... it doesn't legislate.  It's a 'Legislature Building'."  Following this decree, in 1974, the Library was officially renamed the Legislature Library.

The primary client group of the Library comprises the Lieutenant Governor and all the Members of the Legislative Assembly. The Library, as a branch of the Legislative Assembly Office (LAO), comes under the administrative direction of the Clerk. Like other branches of the organization, it provides nonpartisan services to the all the Members regardless of caucus affiliation. Additionally, Alberta's Legislature Library has always provided some services to the civil service and to the general public.

The collection is strong in the areas of public policy and administration, political science, legislation, and Canadian history. The large historical collections of Alberta government publications, community newspapers, and local histories are relied upon heavily by library clients.

The Legislature Library's catalogue is available through the Legislative Assembly Office (LAO)'s web site.

Licensed databases and a variety of electronic services are available to primary clients for research purposes.

The Library is a member of The Alberta Library (TAL), a province-wide consortium of multi-type libraries that cooperate to provide enhanced services to their clients.

Legislature Library 216 Legislature Building 10800-97 Avenue Edmonton, Alberta T5K 2B6
1-780-427-2473