Forbes Mellon Library and Lipstein Law Reading Room

The Forbes Mellon Library was opened in 1986 and is named after two major benefactors, Mansfield Forbes, a former Fellow, and Paul Mellon, an undergraduate at Clare, 1929-31. It is situated in Memorial Court in a building of considerable architectural interest designed by Sir Philip Dowson. The building also houses a computer room (in addition to computing facilities within the library), a student common room, three music practice rooms, and a lecture recital room.

The library is open to all members of Clare College currently in residence, and, in common with other college libraries, forms part of the tripartite library provision within the University, complementing both the specialist libraries found in faculties and departments and the Cambridge University Library.

The Forbes Mellon holds about 30,000 books. They are arranged in subject order within the Dewey Decimal Classification scheme. Although the stock is primarily that required by undergraduates, many postgraduate texts are kept, together with general reference works, Tripos papers, encyclopaedias and dictionaries. Multiple copies of many essential texts are available. Requests for the library to purchase books should be entered in the Book Recommendation Form on the college website, or in the Suggestions Book on the display table in the library.

The Clare law library is in the Lipstein Law Reading Room in Ashby Court. Access is restricted to students reading Law and Land Economy. All books in this room are for reference use only and may not be removed. There are two networked PCs in this room and a printer. Requests for the library to purchase law books should also be entered in the Book Recommendation Form on the college website, or in the Suggestions Book in the reading room.

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