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Manuscripts
The Society's manuscript department contains rich resources for the study of American history and culture. Numbering over 2,000 collections and well over a million items, the Society's manuscripts span the years from 1613 into the twentieth century.
The manuscripts collection includes family papers, business records, diaries, account books, and organizational records, all with a focus on New England. Read more about the manuscripts collection here. The manuscripts department also houses the Society's own archives.
Contact
For questions, please contact the curator of manuscripts, Ashley Cataldo. For information on obtaining digital images please review the step-by-step guide.
How to FindGeneral Catalog Search results may be limited to show only manuscript material. Finding aids (inventories) are available online for collections larger than a singer volume or folder. If a finding aid exists a link to it will appear in the "more about this item" area on the right side bar section of the collection's online catalog record. Finding aids itemize collections at the box, folder, or volume level, providing more specific access to the information contained within collections. |
Digital AccessFreely available American Vernacular Music Manuscripts, ca. 1730-1910 A Day In the Life of a Blacksmith A Day in the Life of a Schoolmarm |
By subscription (must be at AAS or an institution that has purchased the digital product): Civil War Primary Source Documents Manuscript Women's Letters and Diaries from the American Antiquarian Society |
The Society actively seeks additions to its manuscript holdings. Gifts are a vital source of collections, particularly of family papers and diaries. The Nancy and Randall K. Burkett Fund, endowed in 1999 for the purchase of manuscripts, has provided valuable support for expanding the collections. Several other funds, including the Henry F. DePuy Fund, the Harriette Merrifield Forbes Fund, and the John Thomas Lee Fund are designated for both book and manuscript purchases.
An excellent account of the Society's acquisition of manuscripts, by William L. Joyce, appears in the Society's Proceedings 89 (1979): 123-52.
