The Luís da Silva Ribeiro Public Library and Regional Archive saw its new facilities opened last September 16, under the aegis of Luís da Silva Ribeiro, an illustrious Terceira-born personality who was directly involved in the creation of the Library, the Archive and the Museum of the city of Angra do Heroísmo.  This institution comprises a considerable diversity of areas, including a public library with an outstanding children's section, a documentary library and an archive of significant importance. It is the only Azorean library that benefits from the legal deposit status, thus receiving a copy of each printed publication in the country, similarly to the National Library of Portugal.

As a public library, its main mission is to facilitate access to knowledge as well as to contribute to the training of the citizens of the community it serves, thereby enhancing their skills and qualifications, while ensuring compliance with the principle of equal opportunities. Accordingly, it provides a range of services aimed at facilitating the access to knowledge and information, both in person and online, and promotes a taste for reading and research.  Its mission is guided by the principles of the Unesco Manifesto, which considers public libraries to be key institutions for education, culture and information as well as key agents for the promotion of peace and the spiritual well-being of humanity.  Hence, in fulfilling this wish and with new and adequate facilities, the Library has the potential to become a centre of knowledge that will facilitate the access to information and promote its vast documentary collection. It has as its mission the empowerment of citizens, who the more educated and informed they are, the more able they are to exercise freedom of thought and expression.  The scope of the Library's goals must be sufficiently wide to allow the reconciliation of document preservation with the access to its collection. This library plays a key role in promoting reading, creativity and access to information, based on the recognition of the vast documentary heritage that it is responsible for preserving and disseminating.