Digital Collections
C.D. Arnold Photographic Digital Collection
Charles Dudley Arnold documented the World’s Columbian Exposition from its construction to its closing and aftermath, from 1891-1894.
HWLC Design/Build Competition Digital Collection
This digital collection includes photos of the five finalist models in the 1987 competition to design and build a new central library.
Old Pops Sheet Music Digital Collection
View single song sheet music published from 1809 to 2004.
Chicago Department of Urban Renewal Digital Collection
View nearly 16,000 photographic negatives that illustrate urban renewal in Chicago in its positive, negative and mundane lights.
Timuel D. Black Jr. Digital Collection
Tim Black's knowledge of history, Black life and politics in Chicago is represented in this collection of his speeches, 1960s-1990s.
Harold Washington: Selected Speeches Digital Collection
The gifted orator spoke at many public and private events, especially during his mayoral administration, 1983-1987.
George Cleveland Hall Branch Digital Collection
Materials document the opening and operations of Hall Branch, the meeting place for many writers of the Chicago Black Renaissance.
Illinois Writers Project: "Negro in Illinois" Collection
Many of the Chicago Black Renaissance writers worked on this book project exploring the African American experience in Illinois.
Chicago Park District Records: Photographs
Photographs from the Chicago Park District document how the city’s parks have grown, changed and been enjoyed for more than a century.
Chicago Theater Digital Collection
Playbills and programs for drama, opera, vaudeville, dance and music at early Chicago theaters, 1848-1922.
Ravenswood-Lake View Community Collection
Explore Lake View Township and its evolution from an independent municipality into current Northside communities, 1860s-1990s.
Remembering Harold Washington Digital Collection
Chicago’s first African American mayor served from 1983 to 1987, and his legacy endures.
Philip David Sang Digital Collection
Unpublished and published works and ephemera focused on Africans and African Americans from the Middle Passage to the civil rights movement.
Civil War: Wayne Whalen Digital Archive
Camp equipment, weaponry and uniforms used on the homefront and the battlefield.
Chicago Renaissance Digital Collection
African American community leaders, performers, artists, writers and activists on Chicago’s South Side, 1930-1950.
A-Z Digital Collections
Chicago Public Library's digital collections document life in Chicago through archival images, documents and artifacts.
