Guide to CBH Digital Collections

The Center for Brooklyn History collects, preserves and makes accessible the most comprehensive collection of materials related to Brooklyn’s history and culture in the world.

For additional information, to submit a reference question, or for help navigating any of these resources, please contact the Center for Brooklyn History at cbhreference@bklynlibrary.org.

This guide emphasizes text-based archival material unique to CBH, but also includes select materials from the Society’s collections of photographs, maps, and prints and drawings, as well as some selections from the library’s extensive collection of books. In addition to the material detailed in this guide, there are many other resources at CBH useful to research in Brooklyn’s agricultural history. Researchers can use CBH’s online catalog, Bobcat, for other relevant material such as books and other printed matter available in the library. Search the catalog here.

Collection materials are arranged by type in this guide. Within the format sections, collections or items are presented in rough chronological order according to the earliest date of the collection.

Each entry follows the format:

Collection name, date range of the collection
Call number, if applicable
Link to more information about collection (if available).
Brief description of relevant content in the collection.

Digital Resources

Brooklyn Newsstand This collection contains over 30 local newspapers digitized in a partnership with Newspapers.com. Dates range from 1835-1999 and include Brooklyn wide titles such as The Brooklyn Daily Eagle and small neighborhood papers such as Greenpoint Weekly Star and the Bay Ridge Home Reporter. Researchers can use Newsstand to keyword search articles by name, address, organization, and event. A tutorial can be found here.

Center for Brooklyn History Map Collections comprises over 1,500 maps subdivided into categories including Brooklyn Neighborhoods, Land Use, Leisure, and more.

A separate subset of approximately 350 maps is available on the original Brooklyn Public Library digital collections portal in our Maps Collection, which spans from 1666-2002 and contains topographical, demographic, transit and street maps.

Historical Fire Insurance Maps (FIMo) for building research, available remotely with a library card, include digitized Sanborn Maps and atlases spanning from mid-19th through the mid-20th centuries.

Brooklyn Postcard Collection contains postcards of Brooklyn in black & white, and color spanning approximately 1905 to 1986, with the bulk 1905-1930. Subjects include prominent Brooklyn buildings, churches, schools, cultural sites, Brooklyn Public Library branches, portraits of prominent individuals, theatrical productions and neighborhood views.

City and telephone directories online from 1856-1967 onward. Fully keyword searchable. The City and Telephone Directories provide a wealth of information about individuals, businesses, occupations, advertising, as well as practical neighborhood information such as street maps, public services, shopping and more. A tutorial can be found here.

Brooklyn High School Newspapers Collection: Digitized news publications representing 55 Brooklyn high schools spanning from 1853 to 1994 and featuring notable and historical institutions such as Erasmus Hall and Fort Hamilton High School. A tutorial can be found here.

The Digital Collections Portal contains digitized black and white images from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle's photo morgue, as well as the Brooklyn Maps collection, Brooklyn Postcards collection, the Greenpoint Environmental History Project, photographs of BPL branches, and select images from individual photographer's collections, such as Jamel Shabazz and Terrence Jennings. Searchable by keyword, place, date, and more, and available from anywhere. A tutorial can be found here.

The Center for Brooklyn History's Oral History Collections portal collects over 1,200 interviews on subjects ranging from the AIDS/Brooklyn Oral History project, the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Muslims in Brooklyn, and more.

Our Streets, Our Stories is a digital collection of oral histories and personal items donated by Brooklyn residents reflecting their lives in the borough. Highlights include the Greenpoint Environmental History Project, Brooklyn Jewish History Project, and COVID-19 Stories.

The Brooklynology Blog Archive is a fully keyword searchable and subject-organized using Archive-It as part of the Community Webs program, including many onneighborhood history. A tutorial can be found here.

Genealogy Research Guideincluding links to Ancestry.com and NYC vital records portals, instrumental in conducting family history research.

House & Building Research Guide includes tips for getting started on building and neighborhood research, links to databases such as Property Shark, and New York City property records at the Department of Buildings, Department of Finance, the Department of Records/Municipal Archives, and the Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Center for Brooklyn History Talksonline includes documentation of all CBH events, which feature exciting speakers engaging with a wide range of topics that intersect with history. View a schedule of all upcoming programming here.

For help with advanced searches in our library catalog or digital collections portal, clickhere.