McLaren Collection | National Library of Australia (NLA)

McLaren Collection

The McLaren Collection features over 3,460 books and pamphlets, primarily focused on Australian local, church, business, and organisational histories. This national collection, with a particular strength in Victorian publications, provides a rich resource for exploring Australia’s past. Highlights include local histories (2,148 items), church histories (838 items), and rare pamphlets, maps, and typescripts. The collection reflects Ian McLaren’s lifelong passion for books, bibliography, and preserving stories of Australia’s communities.

Key items in the collection

This collection hosts a range of formats, including:

At the time of acquisition, the McLaren Collection numbered about 5000 items. Subsequently, many of the 600 books were incorporated in the Australian Collection and duplicates were discarded. The collection currently consists of 3464 items arranged in the following groupings:

  • Local histories (2148 items)
  • Church histories (838 items)
  • Business histories (298 items)
  • Organisation histories (99 items)
  • School histories (81 items)

Most of the items are pamphlets and booklets. In addition, there are issues of magazines, newspaper supplements, reprints, parliamentary papers (Victorian), newspaper cuttings, maps and typescripts. The coverage is national, with the greatest strength being in Victorian publications. The 127 boxes of local histories,

  • 50 relate to Victoria
  • 34 to New South Wales
  • 15 to South Australia
  • 10 to Queensland
  • 7 to Tasmania
  • 6 to Western Australia 
  • 4 to Australian Capital Territory 
  • One to Northern Territory

About Ian McLaren

Early life and career

Ian Francis McLaren (1912–2000) was born in Launceston, Tasmania, and received his education at Caulfield Grammar School and the University of Melbourne. He began his career as a chartered accountant with Flack & Flack in Melbourne from 1930 to 1936, before moving to become the secretary of Davies Coop (New South Wales) Ltd between 1940 and 1942. During World War II, he served in the Royal Australian Navy from 1942 to 1945. After the war, McLaren became a partner in the accountancy firm of Harris and McLaren, where he worked from 1945 to 1965.

Political career

In 1945, McLaren was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly as an independent, though he was defeated in 1947. He returned to politics in 1965, re-elected as the Liberal candidate for the Caulfield seat, and served until 1979. During his tenure, he held the position of Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees from 1973 to 1979.

Board and committee work

McLaren's leadership extended beyond politics into a vast array of community and cultural boards and committees. He served as president or chairman of multiple organisations, including the Youth Hostels Association of Victoria (1947–49), Caulfield Technical College Council (1951–52), the Victorian Good Neighbour Council (1955–58), the Royal Victorian Historical Society (1956–58), the Australian YMCA (1957–63), and the Book Collectors Society of Australia (1965). He was also a member of the Melbourne University Council (1977–79) and the History Advisory Council of Victoria (1975–83).

Passion for book collecting

McLaren was one of Australia's leading book collectors, known for his deep commitment to bibliography. Starting his collection in 1946, by 1963, he had amassed about 25,000 items, with notable strengths in voyages and exploration, crime and punishment, political affairs, Australian Aborigines, and works by Australian writers like Henry Lawson. He had a particular focus on local histories, collecting extensively from booksellers, local government authorities, and voluntary organisations. McLaren's passion for bibliographies led to him compiling and publishing around 50 bibliographies, covering topics ranging from aviation to the writings of prominent Australian figures.

Legacy

McLaren's extensive book collection and his role in Australian bibliographic history have left a lasting legacy in the field of historical research and collecting. His dedication to documenting and preserving Australian heritage through literature, along with his contributions to various community organisations, marked him as a significant figure in the cultural life of Victoria.

Background to the collection

The collection of local histories, church histories, business histories and organisational histories was purchased from McLaren in 1965.

The McLaren Collection is housed within the Australian Collection as a distinct group, with the original order created by Ian McLaren preserved. The collection is organised by state and then alphabetically by place or name of the body. Each item has been individually catalogued, and the call numbers are prefixed with:

  • MCL HIST (local histories)
  • MCL CHU
  • MCL BUS
  • MCL ORG
  • MCL SCH

All local histories have been microfilmed, with the microfiche copies assigned the call number prefix mc N 1870.

McLaren’s library, totalling about 35,000 volumes, was acquired by the Baillieu Library at the University of Melbourne in 1976.

This guide was prepared using these references:

Page published: 07 Jan 2025

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