Location
60 West Walton Street, Chicago, IL 60610
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Mission Statement
The Newberry Library, open to the public without charge, is an independent research library dedicated to the advancement and dissemination of knowledge, especially in the humanities. The Newberry acquires and preserves a broad array of special collections research materials relating to the civilizations of Europe and the Americas. It promotes and provides for their effective use, fostering research, teaching, publication, and life-long learning, as well as civic engagement. In service to its diverse community, the Newberry encourages intellectual pursuit in an atmosphere of free inquiry and sustains the highest standards of collection preservation, bibliographic access, and reader services.
History
The Newberry Library was founded in 1887 by a bequest of Chicago banker and civic leader Walter L. Newberry, who provided for the formation of a library that would be free of charge and open to the public. Learn more about the Newberry's first librarian, William F. Poole, and the building's architect, Henry Ives Cobb.
Collections
The Library's collections number 1.5 million books, five million manuscript pages, and 500,000 historic maps.
Public Programs
The Library offers a vast array of annual events, seminars, concerts , lectures, teacher programs, and other public programming in addition to exhibits related to its collections.
Gallery Hours
Monday, Friday, and Saturday from 8:15 am - 5:30 pm
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 8:15 am - 7:30 pm
The galleries are closed on Sunday.
Reading Room Hours
Friday and Saturday from 9 am - 5 pm
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 10 am - 6 pm
The reading rooms are closed on Sundays and Mondays.
Tours
Thursdays at 3 pm and Saturdays at 10:30 am
Reservations for groups are required; please call (312) 255-3595.
Admission
Free. All ages are welcome in galleries; readers must be 16 years or older. Readers will be asked to register and show a government issued photo ID before using the collections.
Research Centers
Four major research centers sponsor work in areas of scholarship in which the Newberry's collections are particularly strong: American Indian history, cartography, local and family history, and Renaissance studies.