Libraries in Cardiff city library branches. The first city library opened in central Cardiff in 1861, followed by the city's first branch library in Splott in 1894. The latest building to serve as Central Library opened in 2009 as part of a major reconstruction of the eastern city centre, including the St. David's 2 project. Cathays and Canton Libraries are both Carnegie Libraries, built with money donated by Scottish businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. In 1861, a free library was set up by voluntary subscription above the St Mary Street entrance to the Royal Arcade in Cardiff. By 1862, the Public Libraries Act
Crown Buildings, Cathays Park twenty years. In 1934–8, the block now known as Cathays Park 1 (a.k.a. CP1 or old Crown Building) was built by P. E. Hanton, as offices for the Welsh Board of Health. It is a three-storey building in the Stripped Classical style, with of floorspace. It also has an attic and a basement. Cathays Park 2 (a.k.a. CP2 or new Crown Building) is a five-storey office building with of floorspace, including an underground car park and a central atrium housing a cafe for the office staff. The "Encyclopaedia of Wales" describes CP2, completed in 1979, as conveying an impression of