The DCA Lending Library


​​The first reference to the DCA Library was in 1955 when the Journal mentioned that one Admiralty chart of the Isle of Wight was available for borrowing. Postage was 6d each way, paid by the borrower. For two decades there were no more than 19 books in the library, all but two were pilot books and tidal stream atlases. In the next two decades the library increased, reaching 425 books by 1991, including 92 pilot books. A decade later in 2000, library usage was first quantified. By then the books had reached 600. Borrowing peaked with 300+ items borrowed per year; 6 items per week.  About half of these were back copies of the Journal.
In 2017/18 many of the older books were returned to members or disposed of in other ways as it was clear they would not be read again. So the current library has about 300 books on the shelf. Members may borrow these postage free and they can also request the Librarian to obtain any book they require and he will endeavour to obtain it through the secondhand book market. That gives members access to an online stock of some 10,000 sailing related books!  The early enthusiasm for charts and pilot books seems to have been replaced by a desire for journey / adventure / struggle against adversity books. So if you are a DCA member why not dip into the DCA Library and see what you can find?
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The DCA Library
The DCA Library Catalogue groups books into the following sections and gives publication dates and some idea of content:
  • Dinghy Cruising, Camping and Living Aboard, Cooking
  • Dinghy Sailing, Racing, Rigs, Sails and Techniques
  • Seamanship, Boat Handling, Navigation, Safety, Tides and Meteorology
  • Boat Types / Classes, Equipment, Trailers, Engines and Electrics
  • Boat Building and Design, Plans, Modifications, Repair and Maintenance
  • Canoeing, Inflatables and "Underwater"
  • Lakes, Rivers and Inland Waterways
  • Pilots, Guides, Cruising Areas, Charts and Launching Sites
  • Voyages, Cruises, Travels and Biographical
  • Maritime History, Shipbuilding and the Fishing Industry
  • Sailing and Cruising - General, and Miscellaneous Articles and Magazine Extracts
  • Magazines, Leaflets, Plans, DVDs and CD-ROMS
DCA Members can view the catalogue by logging in to the DCA Library page in the Members' Section of the website where they will also find the instructions on how to borrow a book.

Back copies of the Journal

The Library has a two full sets of DCA Bulletins and Journals, so members can borrow a back copy if they wish. However there is also an archive of PDF copies of the Journal from 2005 onwards which can be accessed by logging in to the Members' Section Journal Archive page.

Recent additions to the Library