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Monday 9:30am - 5pm Tuesday 9:30am - 5pm Wednesday 9:30am - 5pm Thursday 9:30am - 5pm Friday 9:30am - 5pm

New York State Library

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New York State Library

Established in 1818, the New York State Library (NYSL) is one of the nation's oldest state libraries. Answering questions since 1818.

06/10/2026

Join us on Wednesday, June 24, at noon for Scattered and Fugitive Things: How Black Collectors Created Archives and Remade History, a free webinar from the NYS Library.

Author Laura E. Helton will discuss her recent book, Scattered and Fugitive Things, which tells the stories of Black collectors who created the first enduring set of African American archives in the early twentieth century. In defiance of those who cast doubt on the idea of Black history, these collectors activated bibliophile Arturo Schomburg’s declaration that “the American Negro must remake his past in order to make his future.” That activation entailed both risk and pleasure, and it produced archival abundance—a proliferation of files and collections documenting the rich history of the African diaspora.

Laura E. Helton is a historian who writes about collections and how they shape our world. She is an Associate Professor of English and History at the University of Delaware, where she teaches African American literature, archival studies, and public humanities.

For more information and to register, please visit: https://nyslibrary.libcal.com/event/16308998

06/09/2026

The NYS Library genealogy and local history collections are a valuable resource for anyone researching their family and community history. Whether you are just beginning to learn about your New York ancestors, or you are working to break through a “brick wall” this summer, the Library’s collections are well worth exploring.

Located on the 7th floor of the Research Library, the genealogy and local history collection includes materials such as published family genealogies, county and town histories, religious records, church histories, genealogical newsletters, and research guides. The library also provides onsite access to historical and genealogical related databases.

The genealogy and local history collections are housed in browsable stacks and are open to the public. While researchers are welcome to search these vast collections, some preparation can help to make your research visit more productive.

Prepare for your research visit on our blog: https://nyslibrary.libguides.com/blogs/system/genealogy-and-local-history-planning-a-research-visit-to-the-nys-library

06/05/2026

Staff expertise at the NYS Library has worldwide reach! Don’t miss the Library’s own New Netherland expert Charles Gehring being interviewed on Vetenskapsradion Historia, Sweden’s most popular podcast about history and archaeology!

We don't speak Swedish (do you?), but we heard that this episode is pretty fantastic!

You can listen to the entire episode (in Swedish) at: https://www.sverigesradio.se/avsnitt/han-kopte-manhattan

06/02/2026

The NYS Library’s Van Rensselaer Manor Papers collection comprises over 300 containers of documents in varying condition. Of this sizable collection, only four volumes of material have been translated and published.

Many documents from this collection were damaged in the 1911 Capitol Fire. In the hours after the fire, A.J.F. Van Laer and I.N. Phelps Stokes were among the first people to enter the Library with the goal of salvaging any damaged manuscripts that might remain. They sorted through four feet of still-smoking debris shovelful by shovelful, searching for any surviving scraps.

Today, the NYS Library continues to provide access to this invaluable collection through the development of an extensive finding aid, as well as conservation, transcription, translation, and digitization.

Read more about our work to make this fascinating collection available to researchers on our blog: https://nyslibrary.libguides.com/blogs/system/out-of-the-flames-the-van-rensselaer-manor-papers

06/01/2026

This weekend!

Get ready to roar at the NYS Library’s first-ever Super Story Party on Sunday, June 7, from 10 AM to 12 PM! Young readers and dino-enthusiasts are invited to celebrate their love of reading and explore this year’s Summer Reading theme of Unearth a Story with a seriously epic library party.

Join in on a rollicking good time as we uncover hidden histories and explore the paleontological past! Special guests and community partners include children’s singer/songwriter Johnny Only, magician Ron Cain, The RED Bookshelf, New York State Archives, New York State Museum, and the Talking Book and Braille Library.

Families attending the Super Story Party will leave with information and materials connecting them with this year’s Summer Reading Program and literacy learning at home.

Read more about the Super Story Party and register for the magic show at: https://nyslibrary.libcal.com/event/16799238

05/28/2026

Join us on Thursday, June 4, at 12:30 PM, for We the Dead: Preserving Data at the End of the World, a free webinar from the NYS Library.

In the late nineteenth century, the U.S. government and American corporations generated an unprecedented amount of paper records. The data complex emerged as a national network of repositories built to house all those documents. Over the next several decades, the data complex expanded from traditional archives and libraries to bombproof bunkers and securitized data banks. In the 21st century, some tech companies are working to build data centers in outer space, while others have figured out how to store backups of digital files in synthetic DNA. How did Americans become so obsessed with preserving data, and how is the data complex expanding and changing today? How is it changing us?

Presenter Brian Michael Murphy is Chair and Associate Professor of American Studies at Williams College, and a Faculty Associate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University.

For more information and to register, please visit our events calendar at: https://nyslibrary.libcal.com/event/16442797

05/27/2026

Don’t forget that in between visits to the NYS Library, you can access our excellent electronic resources 24/7!

Search for books and other materials held by the NYS Library in the catalog or explore our digital collections. To get started, visit: https://www.nysl.nysed.gov/elecres

05/26/2026

Calling all young readers and dinosaur-lovers: Get ready to roar at the NYS Library’s first-ever Super Story Party on Sunday, June 7, from 10 AM to 12 PM!

Celebrate your love of reading and explore this year’s Summer Reading theme of Unearth a Story with an epic library party. Join in on a rollicking good time as we uncover hidden histories and explore the paleontological past!

Families attending the Super Story Party will leave with information and materials connecting them with this year’s Summer Reading Program and literacy learning at home.

Read more about the Super Story Party, including our lineup of very special guests, at: https://nyslibrary.libcal.com/event/16799238

05/21/2026

Join us on Wednesday, June 17, at 12 PM, for The Home Front: Revolutionary Households, Military Occupation, and the Making of American Independence, a free NYS Library webinar that tells the story of the American Revolution from inside the home.

Prior to the American Revolution, the urban centers of colonial North America had little direct experience of war. With the outbreak of violence, British forces occupied every major city, invading the most private of spaces: the home. Building on a stunning wealth of primary sources, Lauren Duval vividly captures daily life during the Revolution through the eyes and ears of those who intimately experienced it, showing how men and women of all races, statuses, and states of freedom understood its implications for their lives, families, and the nascent American Republic.

Presenter Lauren Duval is an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma and a historian of early North America specializing in women’s and gender history, family history, and the era of the American Revolution. She is the author of The Home Front: Revolutionary Households, Military Occupation, and the Making of American Independence, which was awarded the Society for Military History’s Distinguished Book Award for a First Book.

For more information and to register, please visit: https://nyslibrary.libcal.com/event/16601059

05/20/2026

The NYS Talking Book and Braille Library works with the National Library Service to provide the free BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download) service in New York State (outside of New York City and Long Island).

BARD allows you to instantly download digital books and magazine titles directly to the devices you already use, like smartphones, tablets, or computers. You won’t need to wait for physical books to be mailed to your home, and there's no waiting list for new and popular titles!

For more information on BARD and the Talking Book and Braille Library, please visit our website: tbbl.nysed.gov

Address

222 Madison Avenue
Albany, NY
12230

Opening Hours

Monday	9:30am - 5pm
Tuesday	9:30am - 5pm
Wednesday	9:30am - 5pm
Thursday	9:30am - 5pm
Friday	9:30am - 5pm

Telephone

+15184745355

Website

http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/

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