Cowichan Valley Quaker Library
The online catalogue
The Cowichan Valley Quakers library catalogue is one of more than 40 Quaker library catalogues available on LibraryThing, a web resource for readers. Many search options are available. For example, try entering one or a few keywords in the box marked “Search this library”.
Borrowing procedure
Core Quaker texts are kept on the shelves at Providence Farm. Just sign them out in the book provided. Other books are kept in the homes of individuals willing to lend them. Loans from individuals are by mutual agreement about borrowing, returning, and time length of the loan.
How to list books you are willing to lend
Click here to learn how to list your own books in the catalogue, if you are willing to lend them to other users from the Meeting. You set the conditions for loans with borrowers, and they agree to your conditions.
Book reviews
LibraryThing lets users look at reviews others have written. These are often helpful in giving readers an idea of whether they’d like to read a book or not. Many books in LibraryThing have no review at all, or only a short comment which doesn’t give much information, such as “I loved this book”. Users are invited to contribute a short review (about 10 sentences) of books they read, by submitting it to the library committee, who may edit the review, then upload it to the database.
Quaker texts online
Here is a list of links to collections of Quaker texts you can read online. Please let us know if you find other items that you think should be on this list:
Earlham School of Religion (Richmond, IN) > Digital Quaker Collection. “DQC is a digital library containing full text and page images of over 500 individual Quaker works from the 17th and 18th centuries. The proprietary software developed for Earlham School of Religion provides multiple search functions and an interface for viewing pages.”
International Relations and Security Network (Zürich). Type in keyword “Quaker”, there are about 250 publications, many related to the Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO).
Quaker Electronic Archive. “Quaker writings as well as documents such as minutes and resource guides and basic information about Quakerism”.
Quaker Heritage Press (Glenside, PA) > Online texts. Includes texts by important early Quaker authors.
Quaker Pages. “A Christian Quaker web site”.
Tract Association of Friends (Philadelphia, PA). “Tracts, calendars and books”.
Western Friend. Western Friend (previously Friends Bulletin) has published a newsletter or magazine continually since its founding. Volumes from 1929 through 2008 are contained in this Internet Archive collection.
Western Friend Online Library. Searchable, a variety of documents available.
Contact us
The members of the library committee are Judith Appleby, Linda Scheiber, and James Turner. Ask any of us about the Cowichan Valley Quakers library. We’ll gladly try to answer your questions. We also welcome your suggestions for content for this page.