New York Public Library Contact Details
The New York Public Library
Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
5th Avenue and 42nd Street
New York, NY 10018
New York Public Library Contact Details
Phone No: 917-ASK-NYPL / 917-275-6975 / 212-930-0830
Website: www.nypl.org
About New York Public Library
The New York Public Library was formed in 1895 by putting together a $2.4 million contribution from Samuel J. Tilden. It combined the collected works of the Astor and Lexox Libraries that were experiencing financial problems. The New York Public Library was first opened in 1911.
New York Public Library - NY Public Library Building
The building that is popularly recognized by people as the New York Public Library is actually the Humanities and Social Sciences Library, which is a part of the NY Public Library system. The New York Public Library system is made up of 5 research libraries, 81 branch libraries and 3,147 staff!
This building is constructed in the Beaux-Arts style, and was visualized by Dr. John Shaw Billings, director of the New York Public Library. It was the leading marble building built in the United States when it first opened, and was home to more than 1 million books at that time.
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The building was planned by Carrere and Hastings. After Sixteen years, on May 23, 1911 President William Howard Taft, Governor John Alden Dix and Mayor William J. Gaynor dedicated the library, and it opened to the public on the next day.
What to see at NY Public Library
Libraries are the remembrance of civilization, unique repositories of documents of human thinking and achievement. The New York Public Library is such a recollection bank.
New York Public Library is situated in the corner of Fifth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets. It is the biggest non-academic library in the United States, after the Library of Congress. It is one of the largest information institutions of the world, with its countless collections comparable to those of the British Library, the Library of Congress, and the Bibliotheque nationale de France.
The library has gained an admired tourist appeal due to the wonderful main reading room that is open to the public.
Nowadays the Library’s online index and website make its possessions easy to get to users worldwide. The Library’s collected works and other set of works themselves became the reflection of the intensely democratic and comprehensive nature of the institution.
Its collection is from the most admired monuments of human civilization such as the Gutenberg Bible and Jefferson’s manuscript copy of the Declaration of Independence, to materials that document the everyday lives of otherwise nameless people.
The New York Public Library’s Collections
New York Public Library - Map Division
Articles & Databases: New York Public Library has more than 300 databases providing online access to journals and magazines, historical newspapers, reference works, and children’s resources by which you can start your research.
Digital Gallery: The NY Public Library has a collection of more than 700,000 images, as well as historical maps, vintage posters, photographs, and more.
E-books & Audio books: You can access thousands of free e-books and audio books for trouble-free download onto computers, e-readers, iPods, and MP3 players at the New York Public Library.
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Special Collections: NY Public Library has special collection of rare books, photos, prints, maps, and media for advanced research, talking books, books in braille, and other special-format material for eligible borrowers.
New York Public Library – Visiting Hours
New York Public Library Hours
- Tuesday – Wednesday: 11 a.m. – 7:30 p.m.
- Thursday – Saturday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Closed Sundays and Mondays
- Also closed on certain holidays
Hours for the NY Public Library for the Performing Arts
- Monday: 12 noon – 8 p.m.
- Tuesday: 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Wednesday: 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Thursday: 12 noon – 8 p.m.
- Friday: 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Saturday: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
NY Public Library - Research Room
How to reach the New York Public Library
By Train / Subway
You can take:
- 4, 5, 6, 6X, 7, 7X trains to the Grand Central – 42 Street subway station
- B, D, F, M trains to the 42 Street – Bryant Park subway stop
- 1, 2, 3, N, R, Q to the Times Square – 42 Street subway station
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By Bus
You can take M5, M7, M10, M66, M104 buss
NY Public Library – Tickets
Admission to the New York Public Library is free.
Other Tourist Attractions Near New York Public Library
- Bryant Park
- Empire State Building
- Times Square
- Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum
- Grand Central Station / Terminal
- Toys R Us
- Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum
- United Nations Building (UN HQ)
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