The Newberry's collections, programs, and exhibitions have been free and open to all since 1887. Curious people from all over visit to research topics of interest, discover their family history, take classes, or learn something new and unexpected.

More than 600 years of human history are waiting to be discovered in the Newberry's reading rooms, exhibition galleries, classrooms, and event spaces. Two visitors walk up the front steps of the Newberry.

At the Newberry, you have access to a wide range of sources chronicling personal stories and historic moments across time. These materials are a direct link to the people and events that have shaped today's world.

Opportunities for research and discovery multiply when people come together. Explore your curiosity in the Newberry's reading rooms, whether you are an amateur historian or a scholar grounding their work in the humanities.

More than 600 years of human history are waiting to be discovered in the Newberry's reading rooms, exhibition galleries, classrooms, and event spaces. Plan Your Visit

You'll find more than 20,000 published genealogies at the Newberry. Colonial America and New England are especially well represented. Many rare titles covering gentry and noble families of the British Isles are also included.

The Newberry's online catalog is the primary tool for searching across the collection, from books and maps to journals and manuscripts. Search Catalog. Finding Aids and Inventories. Detailed finding aids outline the organization and the contents of archival collections at the Newberry. Search Archives. Research Guides

The Newberry is an independent research library with a non-circulating collection of unique primary sources. Although we aren’t part of the public library system, we are free and open to the public. Anyone can visit our exhibitions or attend our public programs.

The Newberry has one of the nation’s strongest genealogy collections. This one-session course will show you accredited research methods for tracing your family’s history in America. Also learn about genealogical relationships, traditional family trees and charts, plus see a step-by-step example of finding genealogical information at home ...

Welcome to our growing digital collections of manuscripts, maps, books, photographs, video, artwork, and other rare and unique materials from the Newberry Library.