American Alpine Club Library

American Alpine Club Library The American Alpine Club Library was established in 1916 to preserve the history and culture of climbing. Members can check out 20K books via the mail.

We are working to put our thousands of rare books and archives online. Established in 1916, the AAC Library is one of the oldest alpine libraries in the United States and likely holds the largest collection of mountaineering-related books in the world. The AAC Library was initially housed in the New York Public Library until 1929. It moved locations twice before settling into the AAC's new headqu

arters in a remodeled firehouse in Manhattan at 113 East 90th Street in 1946. There we remained until the mid-1990s when we moved to Golden and our present location. We have a circulating collection of more than 20,000 books and videos devoted to all aspects of mountaineering or alpinism, including rock climbing, ice climbing, bouldering, hiking and skiing. Our special collections and archives include thousands of photographs, artifacts and manuscripts as well as over 35,000 books. We also maintain and provide access to the Colorado Mountain Club Archives. AAC Members can borrow up to 10 items (5 videos at a time) for 28 days. For members outside the Golden area, library staff will mail you the guidebooks, videos, or other books for free (within the US). The only cost to you is the return postage and shipping insurance.

To celebrate Colorado’s 150 years of statehood, a special stamp is being released on January 24, 2026. The photo selecte...
01/23/2026

To celebrate Colorado’s 150 years of statehood, a special stamp is being released on January 24, 2026. The photo selected for the stamp is one of John Fielder’s beautiful shots of Jagged Mountain.

Shown here is a photo of Jagged Mountain by Carleton Long, taken in 1933. The San Juan Mountaineers, including Long, made the first ascent on August 8, 1933. Overlayed is the paper they left as the summit register. The climbers were: Carleton C. Long, H.L. McClintock, Lewis V. Giesecke, Dwight G. Lavender, and T. Melvin Griffiths.

The video is a clip from Carl Blaurock’s 1941 film 🎥. It was taken during the CMC’s annual In-State Outing, that year they spent two glorious weeks in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado. This clip is of their attempt to climb Jagged Mountain.

Address

710 10th Street, Ste 15
Golden, CO
80401

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when American Alpine Club Library posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to American Alpine Club Library:

Shortcuts

Share

Category