Important Update July 2011 - At the present time access to this
collection is closed to allow for preparation of stock in
readiness for the move to the new Library of Birmingham in 2013.
Find out more about the changes in Central Library The Johnson
Collection was formed to celebrate the association of Dr Samuel
Johnson with Birmingham and now numbers about 2000 volumes of
works by Johnson and books and periodicals about him. It
includes almost all the first editions, such as the Dictionary,
1755, as well as a good range of later editions and critical
works from the 18th century to the present date. Since the
foundation of Birmingham Reference Library a particular interest
has been taken in Samuel Johnson, who had close links with
Birmingham during his early career. The collection of
Johnsoniana has a history of steady growth from the 1860s to the
present. In 1886 it was already large enough to have a separate
heading in the library catalogue and it is now one of the most
comprehensive Johnson collections in