The Archives includes the Museum's Central Administrative Archives and over 300 collections of personal papers and manuscript of notable naturalists and scientists. These include Titan Ramsay Peal's Butterflies of North America (1830), illustrated with watercolor sketches; 35 diaries of Ernest Thompson Seton, the founder of the Boy Scouts (1879-1946); journals of Roy Chapman Andrews from the Central Asiatic Expeditions (1921-30); and field diaries and dinosaur sketches of Edward Drinker Cope (1846-92).

A List of Personal Papers, Manuscripts, and Photographic Print Collections is available for browsing. Color slide collections, film, art and memorabilia collections will be added to this list in the future.

Public Access Policies

An Application to Research the Archival Collections must be filled out, signed, and submitted to Special Collections for approval. (This application is in Portable Document Format [PDF] so you must download Adobe Acrobat PDF reader in order to view and print it.)

The application must include information about the purpose of the research and a brief description of the project, as well as a copy of the resume or CV of the applicant. Upon approval, the applicant may set up an appointment to visit the Department. The appointment will be confirmed in writing (via email or post); a copy of this confirmation along with a photo ID must be presented by the researcher upon arrival for the appointment.

Permission to examine archival collections will be granted subject to whatever restriction may have been placed on the manuscripts by donors or on institutional records by their American Museum of Natural History department or office of origin. For additional information about restrictions please contact the Special Collections Department.

General Policies Regarding Use of Archival Material

Protection of archival material is essential to insure the availability of these materials for future generations.

All material from the archival collections must be used in the Special Collections Reading Room. No bags, drinks, food, or gum are allowed in the Library Reading Room, including the Special Collections area. No books, notes, or pens may be brought into the archive study area.

Archival materials must be handled with care. It is imperative that the user of archives and manuscripts maintain the original order of the materials. Loose items must be viewed flat in their folders on the table. Notes may be made with paper and pencil provided by the Department or on a laptop computer. No marks, erasures, or tracings may be made on any material. The use of portable copiers, cameras, or scanners and cell phones is prohibited.

On written application by the user, permission to obtain photocopies of materials from the archives and manuscripts collection will be granted, subject to any restrictions that may govern the use of the collection and the need to preserve fragile materials that may be damaged by copying.

The researcher is responsible for conforming to copyright and other applicable statutes. The American Museum of Natural History is not necessarily the owner of copyrights of unpublished manuscripts in its collections. Permission to publish must be obtained from the owner of the copyright. Neither permission to examine nor photocopying of materials constitutes permission to quote or publish. Separate application for such permission must be made to the Library or the owner of the copyright.

The Special Collections Department may be contacted at (212) 769- 5420 or via e-mail at: speccol@amnh.org.