THE
DALTON BOOK CLUB[Is still meeting at 'The Railway', Station Road, Dalton-in-Furness]
The earliest existing record of the Dalton Book Club is dated 12th.of May 1764 and consists of two sheets of foolscap paper listing the rules and bearing the signatures of the members.
Until 1842 it was known simply as the "Dalton Club" in the official records, although it must have been generally known as the "Dalton Bookclub' as this is how it was referred to in the accounts dated l 773 and subsequent years, of Mr. Ferdinand Hodgson, a bookseller. In 1842 it was officially referred to as the Dalton Book Club".
In 1764, 27 books were purchased at a cost of £4. 8, 6d, plus a
'Catalogue of Books for 60 years past", at a cost of 6d. The books
purchased were:-
| 1.Life of Col. Gardiner | 3-0d |
| 2.Brown's Travels | 6-0d |
| 3.Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's Letters | 7-6d |
| 4.Female Spectator | 12-0d |
| 2.Brown's Estimate | 8-0d |
| 2.Frauds of the Monks | 4-6d |
| 2.Messiah | 6-0d |
| 1.Birch's Life of the Hon. Robert Boyle | 5-0d |
| 1.Sheloke's Voyages | 5-0d |
| 1.Lewis's Life of Wycliffe | 3-0d |
| 1.Langhorne's Solyman Almena | 2-6d |
| 1.Dean Swift on Polite Conversation | 3-0d |
| 1.Life of General Monk | 5-0d |
| 1.Annual Register for 1763 | 6-0d |
| 4 vols.Thompson's Works | 12-0d |
According to the original rules
the club was run on a year to year basis, commencing on the second
Saturday in June, and regular meetings were held on the second Saturday of
every month, when each member had to pay a 2d subscription. At these
meetings books were allocated to members by means of a lottery and fines
were imposed upon members for failure to return books or for any loss
ordamage to books in their possession. At the end of each year the books
were disposed of, generally by public auction. The Secretary of the Club
was Thomas Atkinson who held this position from 1764 until 1806, Each year
the rules of the Club were confirmed by the signatures of all the members
present at the May meeting. A list of the books purchased was kept in the
register, followed by a list of the rnembers and against each name was a
note of the books issued to them. Following this in the register is a list
of fines imposed, and finally particulars of the sale by auction of the
books and the prices realised. The money derived from the fines was added
to the amount realised by the sale of the books, and the resultant sum was
divided between the members In June 1947, it was resolved that the
subscription be increased to £1 with effect from June l948. This was
amended to £1. 10. 0d in July 1957. In may 1969, the subscription
was again increased, this time to £3. 0. 0d per annum £3. 5.
0d for new members. During its long history the Club has had several
meeting places, commencing at the house of Thomas Taylor in 1764, and
moving from time to time during the subsequent years to include such
places as The White Horse, The Cavendish Arms The Wellington Hotel, The
Conservative Club and at the present time (1997) The Railway. 
