Private book collections – is an integral part of the cultural environment of the Russian educated society of the first half of the XIX century. The library of an outstanding state and political figure, a scholar, an ardent bibliophile A.S. Norov is a book treasury. In the article the process of the collecting his two libraries is considered. The article also considers the manuscripts and books of those libraries, discloses the reasons induced the owner of these magnificent libraries to sell them. It is noted that A.S. Pushkin used A.S. Norov’s library during his work on «The History of Pugachev». A collection of manuscripts by Norov, together with other private collections of the XIX century, made the manuscript stock of Russian state library.