Overview

A world-renowned independent research library in Chicago, the Newberry builds, preserves, and makes accessible an extensive collection of rare books, maps, music, manuscripts, and other material spanning more than six centuries. Free and open to the public since 1887, the Newberry is an independent research library whose world-famous collection is available to scholars, genealogists, and lifelong learners alike. Anyone who is at least 14 years old can sign up for a reader’s card and, in just minutes, have history right at their fingertips–whether it’s in the form of a medieval manuscript, an atlas of hand-colored maps, or a selection of letters between two American authors.

These unique primary sources are part of a vast collection of more than 1.6 million books, 5 million manuscript pages, and 600,000 maps that the Newberry continually preserves, augments, and makes accessible in a variety of ways.

Source: Library website