National Library of Australia, Canberra

The National Library of Australia is the country's largest reference library, responsible under the terms of the National Library Act for "maintaining and developing a national collection of library material, including a comprehensive collection of library material relating to Australia and the Australian people."

The Library's collections of Australiana have developed into the nation's single most important resource of materials recording the Australian cultural heritage. The manuscript collection of the National Library contains about 26 million separate items, covering in excess of 10,492 meters of shelf space. The large National Library building is home to various reading rooms and collections. On the ground floor is the Main Reading Room - this is where the bulk of the Library's Internet access terminals are located, and where wireless internet access is available.