Apart from the volumes now at Cambridge, the rest of our library – some 12,000 books - is housed in the extensive purpose-built area at the top of CA House now known as the Hanson Room in honour of the library’s founder. The library includes books from the early 19th century to the present day and continues to acquire books on all aspects of yachting and the sea for the benefit of members.

Details of recent acquisitions which have been added to the collection along with members’ reviews of many of these new books are available to members online.

The collection’s scope ranges from oceanography, navigation and seamanship through boat building and practical maintenance to tales of voyages and circumnavigations, of shipwreck and racing triumphs as well as a large section devoted to fiction and featuring every classic yachting tale.

A significant number of celebrated authors of these books were CA members, including such notables as Arthur Ransome, Hillaire Belloc, Maurice Griffiths, Uffa Fox and Adlard Coles and the tradition continues with such current writers as Rod Heikell, Ian Dear, Sam Llewellyn and Nigel Calder. For a list of books in the Library whose authors were or are members see the CA author booklist.

The CA Library is never static. New items – magazines, pilots, books, charts, videos, DVDs, cruising reports - are added on an almost daily basis. All the major nautical publishers provide review copies of their latest books, we also purchase books where we perceive there is an important gap in the collection plus we acquire books and charts from members’ donations. (Donations are welcome but if considering making a donation, we ask you to please first send a list of the books to the Librarian. Our collection is very comprehensive and in practice we find that the majority of donated books are already in the collection).

CA members can take out books from the lending collection on four-week loan either by post or by coming in person to the Library. Open daily throughout the week and by arrangement at weekends. The entire catalogue can be searched and book loan requests made online.