IRELAND'S last subscribing library has appointed a new librarian - the first woman to hold the post in its 227-year history.
Samantha McCombe is the Linen Hall's 22nd librarian and completes the first-ever, all female senior team alongside director Julie Andrews, deputy librarian Monica Cash, and finance manager Karen Law.
The Co Antrim woman joins the library from international law firm Allen & Overy she was library & research manager at its Belfast office.
Founded in 1788, the Linen Hall is Belfast’s oldest library, founded by a group of artisans and initially known as the Belfast Society for Promoting Knowledge.
The Linen Hall has amassed vital collections of books and archive material, including its Northern Ireland Political Collection - the most comprehensive archive of material documenting the Troubles in the world, from civil rights pamphlets to literature read by inmates at the Maze.
Ms McCombe was assistant librarian at the Bar Library and the Northern Ireland Assembly Library and has worked in the academic libraries of Queen's University Belfast and the University of Strathclyde.
"I am delighted to be joining such an influential and world-renowned Library," she said.
"I am excited to utilise my experience of running progressive library services and working with the dedicated and experienced team to ensure the preservation and accessibility of our unique collections."
She succeeds John Killen, who joined the library in 1977, working as deputy librarian there for 31 years before being appointed to to the top post.
Ms Andrews said Ms McCombe "will most definitely be an asset to the Linen Hall Library".
