Opening Hours

Monday 8:30 am* to 8:00 pm
Tuesday through Friday 8:30 am* to 5:30 pm
Saturday, 9am to 4pm September - May 17. Closed on Saturdays May 24 - August 30.

*Only the First Floor and Newspaper Rooms are open from 8:30 to 9:00 am.
Holidays
The library observes the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King's Birthday, President's Day, Patriot's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving Day, the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.

The Security Desk and coat check room are located at the entrance of the building. All members entering the building must present a membership card, and deposit coats, briefcases, knapsacks, oversized purses, packages, and similar items with the guard. Members may show guests around the building during regular hours, but should remain with their guests at all times. All visitors to the building must sign in. Tourists are welcome, but will be limited to the first floor and gallery areas only.

Please turn off all phones or set them to vibrate only. In consideration of other members, cell phone conversation is not permitted in the library.

No photographs may be taken within the building without clearance from the Director's Office.

During the warm months, members are welcome to use the fifth and second floor terraces for lunching. To protect our library materials, food and drink are not permitted in other areas of the building at any time, except during special events in the areas indicated.

Readers may use laptops in the Reference Department and on the fifth floor. Please consult with members of the Reference Department about use of personal computers elsewhere in the building. The fifth floor is internet accessible, but members must have their own cable and be able to dial-up to their own internet service providers. The fifth floor also maintains a wireless environment.

Introduction and History
THE BOSTON ATHENÆUM, one of the oldest and most distinguished independent libraries in the United States, was founded in 1807 by members of the Anthology Society, a group of fourteen Boston gentlemen who had joined together in 1805 to edit The Monthly Anthology and Boston Review. Their purpose was to form "an establishment similar to that of the Athenæum and Lyceum of Liverpool in Great Britain; combining the advantages of a public library [and] containing the great works of learning and science in all languages." The library and Art Gallery (established in 1827) were soon flourishing, and grew rapidly, both by purchase of books and art and by frequent gifts. For nearly half a century the Athenæum was the unchallenged center of intellectual life in Boston, and by 1851 had become one of the five largest libraries in the United States. Today its collections comprise over half a million volumes, with particular strengths in Boston history, New England state and local history, biography, English and American literature, and the fine and decorative arts. The Athenæum supports a dynamic art gallery, and sponsors a lively variety of events such as lectures and concerts. It also serves as a stimulating center for discussions among scholars, bibliophiles, and a variety of community interest groups.

History of the Building
The Athenæum's collections resided briefly in Joy's buildings, Congress Street, but by the spring of 1807 were firmly established in Scollay's buildings, Tremont Street, near the present Government Center. The Athenæum remained there until 1809, when the Trustees purchased the Rufus Amory House, adjacent to the King's Chapel Burial Ground at what was then the easternmost point of the Boston Common. In 1822 the growing collections were moved again, this time to the mansion in Pearl Street given to the Athenæum by Trustee James Perkins. The first three floors of the present Beacon Street building, designed by Edward Clarke Cabot, were constructed between 1847 and 1849. The first floor was originally a sculpture gallery, the second housed the library's growing collection of books, and the third, with skylights, served as a painting gallery. The building was completely renovated in 1913-1914, at which time the fourth and fifth floors were added and the entire structure fireproofed. Architect Henry Forbes Bigelow designed these improvements.

The Athenæum's five galleried floors overlook the peaceful Granary Burying Ground, and as Gamaliel Bradford wrote, "it is safe to say that [no library] anywhere has more an atmosphere of its own, that none is more conducive to intellectual aspiration and spiritual peace" (The Quick and the Dead, 1931). The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1966.

How to Join the Athenæum
Click here to go to our Membership page

Exhibitions and Related Events
 In addition to material from the library's own collections, the Athenæum Gallery also features the work of a variety of other artists. New exhibitions appear three or four times a year, and are open to the public without charge. Lectures, exhibit openings, musical presentations, documentary films, and other events take place in the long room of the first floor, are for members only and require reservations.

New (and old) Members Tours:
Join a member of the staff for an introductory tour of the Athenaeum's building and services. Meet at the Circulation Desk, Wednesdays, at noon. No reservations necessary, but please call the Circulation Desk, 617.227.0270 ext. 279 to confirm tour availability.

Art and Architecture Tours:
Tours with an emphasis on the art and architecture of the Athenaeum are offered twice weekly. Docent-led tours are given on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 3pm. Tours are limited in size and REQUIRE RESERVATIONS. Please call the circulation department at 617.227.0270 ext. 279 for reservations and questions.

Athenæum Tea
For many years afternoon tea was a daily tradition at the Athenæum, and readers could enjoy sweet and plain crackers with their tea. In 1959, as our former Director Walter Muir Whitehill was moved to comment, when "some members of the General Court were heard referring to the Athenæum as 'that Athenian tea room,' it seemed a good time to make books the only refreshment offered to readers." In 1984 the tradition of Athenæum Tea was revived by popular demand. Please click here for details.

Researcher Information
Scholars wishing to examine Rare Book and Special Collections materials along with books in our circulating collections, must contact the Reference Department, either by phone, 617.227.0270 ext. 250, 291, 252 or email. Examination of items is by appointment only. For more information regarding collections and rules, please go to our Collections page.

A SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY
OF PUBLISHED WORKS CONCERNING THE
BOSTON ATHENÆUM

The Athenæum Centenary, The Influence and History of the Boston Athenæum from 1807 to 1907 with a Record of its Officers and Benefactors and a Complete List of Proprietors. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1907.

Fifty Books in the Collection of the Boston Athenæum. An Exhibition Catalog. With an introductory essay by Michael Wentworth on the history of the Athenæum's special collections. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1994.

Harding, Jonathan P., and Harry L. Katz. The Boston Athenæum Collection: Pre-Twentieth Century American and European Painting and Sculpture. With the Dowse Collection of Watercolors. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1984.

Howe, Mark Anthony DeWolfe, ed. Anthology Society: Journal of the Proceedings of the Society, October 3, 1805, to July 2, 1811. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1910.

Hoyle, Pamela, Jonathan P. Harding, and Rosemary Booth. A Climate for Art: The History of the Boston Athenæum Gallery, 1827-1873. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1980.

Knowles, Jane S. Change and Continuity: A Pictorial History of the Boston Athenæum. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1976.

Kruse, Robert. The Henry Rowe Schoolcraft Collection: A Catalog of Books in Native American Languages in the Library of the Boston Athenæum. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1991.

Nonack, Stephen. A Catalog of Manuscripts in the Collections of the Boston Athenæum. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1990.

Perkins, Robert F., Jr., William J. Gavin III, and Mary Margaret Shaughnessy, comps. and eds. The Boston Athenæum Art Index, 1827-1874. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1980.

Pierce, Sally, and Catharina Slautterback. Boston Lithography, 1825-1880: The Boston Athenæum Collection. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1991.

Quincy, Josiah. The History of the Boston Athenæum, with Biographical Notices of its Deceased Founders. Cambridge, MA., Metcalf and Company, 1851.

Slautterback, Catharina. Designing the Boston Athenaeum: 10½ at 150. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1999.

Story, Ronald. "Class and Culture in the Boston Athenæum, 1807-1860," American Quarterly (1975), 178-199.

Swan, Mabel Munson. The Athenæum Gallery, 1827-1873. The Boston Athenæum as an Early Patron of Art. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1940.

Wentworth, Michael, with Elizabeth Lamb Clark. The Boston Library Society, 1794-1994. Boston, The Boston Athenæum, 1995.

Whitehill, Walter Muir. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. A Centennial History. 2 vols. Cambridge, MA., Belknap Press, 1970.

-------------. "Portrait Busts in the Library of the Boston Athenæum, Magazine Antiques CIII (June 1973), 1141-1156.