United States Library Directories and Major Libraries

This page:
Web Directories of U.S. Libraries | National and State Libraries | University Libraries | Public Libraries | Independent Research Libraries | Membership Libraries

Web Directories of U.S. Libraries

• Nation's Largest Libraries (American Library Association)

Find Your Nearest Library:

(Enter city and state or Zip code. Data from the Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Institute of Museum and Library Services. Or search Public Libraries in the United States directly.)

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Union Catalogs:

• English Short Title Catalogue (ESTC) - Catalog of books published in Britain and its dependencies from 1473, when printing was introduced in England, to 1800. Includes holdings information for libraries in the British Isles, North America, and elsewhere. This is a fabulous resource for anyone doing historical or literary research! (More about the ESTC)

National and State Libraries

National Libraries (Subject):

• National Agricultural Library
• National Library of Education
• National Library of Medicine
• Turning the Pages lets users view rare books owned by the National Library of Medicine
• National Transportation Library (U.S. Dept. of Transportation)
• Smithsonian Institution Libraries (Search all collections, Smithsonian Institution Research Information System)

National Archives and Records Administration:

• National Archives
• Guide to Federal Records
• National Archives Catalog

Presidential Libraries:

• Presidential Libraries - Libraries devoted to the administrations of Presidents Herbert Hoover through Barack Obama (National Archives)

Unofficial Presidential Libraries:

I.e., not under the auspices of the National Archives

• John Adams Library - Adams' personal library (Boston Public Library)
• Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library (Mississippi State University)
• Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center Library, Fremont, Ohio
• Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum, Springfield, Ill
• Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library - Coming to Dickinson, N.D.
• Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington, Mount Vernon, Va.
• Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library, Staunton, Va

State Libraries:

• State Library Web Sites (LibrarySpot)
• State Libraries (Public Libraries.com)
• Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA) - Directory

Government Libraries Web Directories:

• Federal Libraries Directory (Library of Congress)
• USA.Gov: Libraries and Archives

University Libraries

Major University Libraries:

• University of Califonia, Berkeley
• University of California, Los Angeles
• University of Chicago
• John Crerar Library - Once an independent library specializing in science and technology, now part of the University of Chicago
• Columbia University
• Cornell University
• Harvard University
• University of Illinois
• Indiana University
• University of Michigan
• University of Minnesota
• Princeton University
• Stanford University
• University of Texas
• Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center - Holds the papers of many great American and British authors
• UTopia - Online exhibits from U.T.'s collections
• University of Washington
• University of Wisconsin
• Yale University
• Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
• Center for Research Libraries - The research library's research library

Other Notable University Library:

• Johns Hopkins University: George Peabody Library

Web Directories of U.S. Academic Libraries:

• Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Member Libraries
• ARL Statistics
• Compare Academic Libraries (National Center for Education Statistics)

Public Libraries

Major Public Libraries:

• Boston Public Library
• Brooklyn Public Library
• Chicago Public Library
• County of Los Angeles Public Library
• Los Angeles Public Library
• Free Library of Philadelphia
• Queens Borough Public Library

  Other Notable Public Libraries:

• Salt Lake City Public Library
• Seattle Public Library

Web Directories of U.S. Public Libraries:

• Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Institute of Museum and Library Services
• Public Libraries in the United States (LibraryTechnology.org)
• Public Libraries.com - Libraries by place, with branches, addresses, and phone numbers

Public Library Statistics:

• Compare Public Libraries and Data Files (Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Institute of Museum and Library Services)
• Henen's American Public Library Ratings (HAPLR)

Independent Research Libraries

Americana and the Americas:

• American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass. - The Library's catalog contains a complete record of early American imprints to 1830
• John Carter Brown Library, Providence, R.I. - Pre-1825 works on the Americas
• Hispanic Society Library, New York - "For the study of the art and culture of the Spain, Portugal, Latin America, and the Philippines"

Art and Rare Books:

See also

• Art Libraries (generally associated with museums)
• Getty Research Institute Library, Los Angeles - The collection covers "a comprehensive representation of art and cultural production since antiquity"; significant holdings and database of art auction catalogs
• Pierpont Morgan Library, New York - Rare books and manuscripts from the Medieval era to the 20th century, musical works, early children's books
• Rosenbach Museum and Library, Philadelphia - Books and manuscripts from the collection of the legendary dealer, A. S. W. Rosenbach. Also art collected by his brother, Philip

Business:

• James J. Hill Center Business Library, St. Paul, Minn.

Humanities:

• Dumbarton Oaks Research Library, Washington, D.C. - Byzantine studies, pre-Columbian studies, landscape architecture
• Huntington Library, San Marino, Calif. - Concentrates on British and American literature; history of the West, especially California
• Newberry Library, Chicago - Especially strong in the American West; Portuguese, Brazilian, and Mexican history; history of printing; history of cartography

Poetry:

• Poet's House Library, New York - "A national archive of 70,000 volumes of poetry that is free and open to the public"

Science and Technology:

See also

• Medical Libraries
• Water and other science & technology libraries
• American Philosophical Society Library, Philadelphia - History of science, medicine, and technology
• Linda Hall Library, Kansas City, Mo. - Science, engineering, and technology, including extensive holdings of engineering standards and the collections of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Engineering Societies Library

Shakespeare and His Times:

• Folger Shakespeare Library, Washington, D.C. - World's largest collection of Shakespeare's works, rare Renaissance books and volumes in all disciplines, art works, musical instruments, costumes, and films

Web Directory of U.S. Independent Research Libraries:

See also

• Subject-Matter Library Associations
• Independent Research Libraries Association (IRLA)

Membership Libraries

• Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, La Jolla, Calif
• Athenæum of Philadelphia - Collections on architecture and interior design
• Boston Athenæum - Independent membership library specializing in U.S. and British history, literature, and arts
• Center for Fiction - "The best fiction library in America" (formerly the Mercantile Library of New York)
• Charleston Library Society
• Folio: Seattle Athenaeum
• General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen Library, New York
• Lanier Library Association, Tryon, N.C
• Library Company of Philadelphia - American history and culture from the 17th to 19th centuries
• Mechanics' Institute Library of San Francisco
• Mercantile Library, Cincinnati
• New York Society Library
• Providence Athenæum, Providence, R.I
• Redwood Library and Athenæum, Newport, R.I
• Salem Athenæum, Salem, Mass

Web Directories of U.S. Membership Libraries:

• Membership Libraries Group (Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum)
• Membership Libraries (New York Society Library)