Brierley Hill Technical Institute and Free Library

The Technical Institute and Library was designed to accommodate the two functions of a public, free library and a technical institute to train the many apprentices in the local glass industry. Andrew Carnegie gave £2,000 towards the library building in 1901 and the rest of the cost was borne by Brierley Hill Urban District Council. The foundation stone was laid in April 1903, and the building opened in 1904. The design was by Lewis Harper, who was borough surveyor, and the builder was CA Horton. The brick and terracotta used were locally produced by the Ketley Brick Company, and the sculptures of Learning and Art were modelled by Arthur Gibbons and Albert Oakden who were, respectively, headmaster and assistant of the School of Art. The teaching in the school encompassed fine art and the skills of glass cutting and cameo etching.

The library moved out of the building in the mid-20th century but it remained as a technical institute for the glass industry until recently. It is now a business centre (whatever that is).

The entrances for the two original uses are both ornately decorated and lettered in the Ketley terracotta, but the slope of the site has meant that they do not match and the technical institute doors and fanlight are significantly taller than those for the library.