Welcome to the PMI Victorian History Library Inc.
The Prahran Mechanics’ Institute (PMI) was established in 1854. It is a community owned and run library, specialising in the history of Victoria, Australia. We are a central resource for research into the history of Victoria.
The library has over 40,000 books for loan, many of which are not available for loan elsewhere.
In addition to our extensive lending and reference library specialising in works about Victorian history, we also provide a professional information service for our members and organise educational activities including lectures, seminars and competitions to encourage and facilitate the study of history.
Become a member and discover a wealth of information about the history of Victoria. Joining the library is easy, affordable and open to all.
Our Home for the Library
The PMI Victorian History Library is located at 39 St Edmonds Road, Prahran. The  building  provides:
- shelf space for the collection
- seating  for reading and research
- a public tea room with a  kitchen, urn and microwave
- a dedicated volunteer work room (the Furneaux Room)
- a large multipurpose meeting room (the Moss Room) which can be partitioned off to provide another smaller space for meetings, reading and research
- disabled access
- some on-site parking (inside the ground floor garage door)
Patron
Board
Staff
Want to renew or borrow?
Join the PMI Library
You will be supporting a not-for-profit, community organisation and one of the oldest libraries in Victoria.