Sketches by 19th-century artist Ariyoshi Kondo. (Photo: NYPL Digital Collections, Public Domain)
Before the internet, the New York Public Library was one of the largest repositories of human knowledge in the world. People could call in and ask their random questions to experienced librarians, long before people pulled out their phones to use Google search. But the library has kept up with modern times, making books available for digital rental and providing a wealth of online resources for consultations by the curious. They have opened their historic archives as well, presenting a digital collection of over 870,000 books, documents, and photographs. The public can search, download images, and learn more about the history of New York and the world.
The collections are incredibly vast, with new items being added every day. The collections include local treasures: photographs of the outer boroughs, 19th-century views of the streets, inspections of tenements, and Lewis Hine‘s incredibly impactful documentary shots of a working-class, changing New York. The collection goes well beyond photographs to include personal papers of luminaries such as Alexander Hamilton, fashion sketches from designers, and scientific and medical illustrations. There are records of the LGBTQ rights movement and posters from across political history, antique maps and government photographs.
This incredible archive is ever changing and expanding to keep up with the tides of history. There is something for everyone, whether you love Broadway shows or the gritty West Village of yore. If your passion is Civil War history or the founding period, there’s something for you. Beyond even NYPL’s incredibly impressive offerings, there are countless other internet repositories which make it possible to pursue any passion you desire. Archives of children’s books, classical music, European art, the works of Da Vinci, and even coloring books are available. In the NYPL Digital Collections, you can even order art prints of any media you love, to bring a piece of the collections home.
The New York Public Library, an incredible resource and a repository of history, has made an online archive of over 870,000 documents and books available to the public.
Illuminated manuscript from the 10th century. (Photo: NYPL Digital Collections, Public Domain)
These include collections of Black children’s literature, medieval illuminated manuscripts, and countless photos of old New York.
A cyanotype by Anna Atkins. (Photo: NYPL Digital Collections, Public Domain)
The Lamport Export Company, 507-511 Broadway, in 1935. (Photo: NYPL Digital Collections, Public Domain)
Historical views of E. 15th St. (Photo: NYPL Digital Collections, Public Domain)
Map of North American from 1694. (Photo: NYPL Digital Collections, Public Domain)
h/t: [Open Culture]
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