Mannix Library’s primary role is to serve the needs of staff and students of Catholic Theological College (CTC). The library also welcomes staff and students from the wider University of Divinity community and provides library services to subscribed members of the general public. The Library provides access to over 130,000 print and over 150,000 electronic book and journal volumes, as well as a range of other online resources. It supports teaching and research in biblical studies, theology, philosophy, church history, pastoral studies, and a range of associated disciplines, with an emphasis on the Catholic tradition. In addition to the main library facility, a large compactus room on the ground floor houses historical materials and infrequently used items. These may be accessed on request. In 2019 a new Special Collections Room was built within the main library, to house and showcase rare materials and other items of special interest. Mannix Library also serves the wider University of Divinity community through its management of the University’s online Library Hub.

History

The Library was founded in 1923 as part of Corpus Christi College – the provincial seminary for the Catholic dioceses of Victoria and Tasmania. The seminary and the library were previously located at Werribee, Glen Waverley and Clayton. When Catholic Theological College was established in 1972, library services were extended to staff and students at CTC. In 1999, the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne assumed responsibility for funding the library, which was renamed Mannix Library and relocated from Clayton to its current site in East Melbourne.