Check out these noteworthy libraries with Bloomberg Connects
We’re back sharing our favorite cultural places to discover in New York and beyond in partnership with Bloomberg Connects. All of which you can visit in person, or explore from the comfort of your home. Keep reading to discover six libraries worth studying up on.
Note the below links work best on your smartphone with the Bloomberg Connects app downloaded.
LOCAL
Courtesy of The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
The New York Public Library for Performing Arts | New York, NY, US
We’re starting with The New York Public Library for Performing Arts – an essential resource for anyone interested in the arts. It has one of the most extensive collections relating to theater, film, dance, music, and recorded sound. The idea was first suggested in 1932 by NYPL’s Music Division chief. You can discover the entire “History of the Library of the Performing Arts” on Bloomberg Connects. While you’re there, take a look inside the building with a “Virtual Walkthrough” or check out “The Joffrey + Ballet in the U.S.”– a great example of the wide variety of exhibitions, seminars, and performances they offer.
Courtesy of Center for Brooklyn History
Center for Brooklyn History | Brooklyn, NY, US
If you want to learn more about Brooklyn, this is the place. The Center for Brooklyn History was formed in 2020 by combining the collections of the Brooklyn Historical Society and the Brooklyn Public Library to create the world’s largest catalog of Brooklyn History. It’s dedicated to expanding and diversifying representation of the borough’s history. We recommend exploring the ongoing exhibition: “Brooklyn Is…” which combines photographs, maps, and personal stories from Brooklynites to create complex portraits of the dynamic neighborhood.
NATIONAL
Dartmouth Street Facade, McKim Building. Photo: Aram Boghosian, 2020.
Boston Public Library | Boston, MA, US
Now, let’s head up the coast to Boston Public Library, a pioneer of public library services in America. Founded in 1848 by an act of the General Court of Massachusetts, it has been full of firsts: it was the first free large municipal library in the United States, the first public library to lend books, the first to have branches, and the first to have a children’s room. To hear about some of the art and architectural highlights of the historic library, take the “highlights tour,” you can even learn about what’s behind closed doors with “Hidden BPL.”
Front entrance to the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.
McCracken Research Library | Cody, WY, US
Over in Wyoming, there is a special collections library that serves as an international resource on the American West – the McCracken Research Library. Their collection includes over 35,000 columns of publications, 600 manuscripts, and at least a million photographic images. The collection began with the books of the Cody Family and has grown into a vast collection featuring a few rare publications, including a first edition of “The Call of the Wild.” You can learn about these historical items with the “Rare Book Spotlight” or find out more about the library’s latest acquisitions with “New Books on the American West” and “New Books on Natural History.”
INTERNATIONAL
Courtesy of British Library
British Library | London, England, UK
Across the pond, the British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and one of the largest in the world. Until 1973, the library was part of the British Museum, but since 1998, it has been in a purpose-built, Grade I listed building “of exceptional interest” for its architecture and history. The collection is said to contain between 170 and 200 million items. Since it is a legal deposit library, it is ever-expanding – receiving copies of all books produced in the UK and Ireland, and a high percentage of titles distributed in the UK. And they certainly have some “Treasures,” including the “Magna Carta,” and “Sultan Baybars’ Qur’an,” as well as an impressive collection of “Artworks.”
Danum Gallery, Library and Museum illuminated at night, 2022
Danum Gallery, Library and Museum | Doncaster, England, UK
Danum Gallery Library and Museum is located in South Yorkshire, England. The current site opened to the public in 2021 and houses an art gallery, two museums, a library, and a rail heritage center inside a unique, purpose-built architectural wonder. The Central Library and Children’s Library are on the ground floor, but you’ll find themed books throughout the building. Discover more about “The Rail Heritage Centre” and their fine art “Permanent Collection” on their guide.
If you’re ready to learn more about all these libraries, and a whole world of arts and culture, Bloomberg Connects today.
Open House New York is supported by Bloomberg Connects, a free mobile app featuring guides to hundreds of museums, galleries, sculpture parks, gardens, and cultural spaces.
