The precursor of LPL was Northeast China Library which was officially established on Aug.15, 1948 in Harbin on the basis of the preparatory work beginning from 1947, then was moved to Shengyang in November of the same year. The present name “Liaoning Provincial Library (LPL)” was adopted from 1955, which was the first large size public library ever directly established under the leadership of Chinese Communist Party. In 1989, the new library building with the area of 32,000m2 was beginning to be constructed and was completed by the end of 1997. The new library building was officially opened to the public on August 15, 1998.

        LPL has achieved great development in the past 50 years, which owns an ancient and contemporary book collection of  3.6 million volumes in more than 10 languages at present. In addition, it also has set up exchanging relationship involving literature with the libraries of 17 foreign countries and areas. Among the 560 thousand ancient books collection, the number of reliable text is 120 thousand, which includes near 100 printing books from Song and Yuan dynasty. Besides that it also collects plenty of northeast regional literatures as well as the ones related with Manchu, Qing dynasty and Puppet Manchu Guo Government.

         Staffed with 260 personnel, LPL consists of Office of Directors, Acquisition and Cataloguing Department, Lending Department, Preserving Department, Service Department of Social Science information, Service Department of Sci-Tech Information, Modernized Technique Department, Research and Guiding Department, Reader Work Department, Computer net center, Digital Transition Office etc. Currently Wang Rongguo is the director of LPL.

         LPL has practiced open shelf service with the amount of literature up to 1.8 million to readers so the behavior of reading and borrowing is synthesized.can be realized. Currently in LPL  there are nearly 1007 reading seats available to offer with 73.5 service hours a week in average and daily reader reception volume is up to nearly 3,000 person times.

        The principal professional work of LPL has been managed by computer so self-contained modernization service system is formed, in which the computer management is used in acquisition of literature, cataloguing, circulation, retrieval and serial publications as well as the automation of office. All these facts indicate that LPL is beginning to emphasize the overall strategy of modernized information resource construction, and has achieved some results.

        The basic tenet of establishing social democracy library enterprise with Chinese characteristic is to fully use the source of collected literature, heartily provide service for the readers and promote the improvement of “double civilization” in the scope of all society. LPL always insists on this faith. For years, LPL has been titled "Civilized Work Unit", "Excellent Work Unit", "Pacesetting Work Unit in Starting Undertakings", “Advanced Collective in helping the handicapped", “Advanced unit of culture department of Liaoning province”, first and then, by provincial government and other related authorities. In the Provincial Level Public Library Appraisal organized by the Ministry of Culture during 1998. LPL was evaluated third due to its outstanding results and so was awarded “First-class library.”