Alexander Turnbull Library collections
New Zealand’s national documentary heritage collections, including both published and unpublished items, are held in the Alexander Turnbull Library.
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Archive of New Zealand Music
The Archive of New Zealand Music contains manuscripts, unpublished music scores and recordings, correspondence and other manuscript material relating to New Zealand music, musicians, composers and organisations.
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Cartographic Collection
The Cartographic Collection has over 60,000 historical and current maps, charts and atlases plus map-related DVDs, CDs, books and serials. It concentrates on New Zealand, the Pacific and Antarctica.
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Dorothy Neal White Collection
The Dorothy Neal White Collection includes children’s books published before 1940. Books are mostly from New Zealand, Australia, Britain and the United States.
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Drawings, Paintings and Prints
The Drawings, Paintings and Prints collection holds drawings, prints, paintings, cartoons and architectural plans relating to New Zealand and the Pacific from 1642 to the present.
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Family History Collection
The Family History Collection provides resources for researching family history and genealogy. The collection includes birth, death and marriage indexes, cemetery indexes and shipping passenger lists.
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Fiction Collection
The Library collected overseas published fiction until 1992. The Fiction Collection includes about 59,000 English language books written for adults. Items include popular fiction, crime, romance and detective stories.
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General Lending Collection
The General Lending Collection supports the current information needs of all New Zealanders. It has a strong New Zealand and Pacific focus.
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General Reference Collection
The General Reference Collection includes a large range of resources to support our reference services. It includes print and electronic resources covering all subjects.
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General Serials Collection
The General Serials Collection includes print, online and microform journals, magazines and newspapers. The collection is focused on resources from New Zealand and the Pacific.
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Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand
The Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand (LAGANZ) focuses on lesbian and gay histories, organisations, communities, and cultures in New Zealand.
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Manuscripts Collection
The Manuscripts Collection is New Zealand’s major collection of non-government manuscripts. Manuscripts are the unpublished records of individuals and organisations, preserved for their research value.
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Māori Reference Collection
The Māori Reference Collection contains published items relating to Māori. The collection focuses on iwi, whakapapa and land information resources.
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Motor Manuals Collection
The Motor Manuals Collection includes car and motorbike manuals dating back to the early 1900s. The collection hasn’t been added to since 1992, but you can still borrow items.
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Music Collection
The Music Collection includes music from New Zealand and other countries. It contains scores, books, magazines, cassettes, CDs, LPs, 78rpm recordings, cylinders, videos, DVDs, and choral and orchestral sets.
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National Children’s Collection
The National Children’s Collection contains books written for children and young people. Our collection of over 100,000 books includes New Zealand and Pacific titles, award-winning and controversial children’s books.
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National Library General Collections
The General Collections cover all subjects to meet the current information needs of New Zealanders. The collections support the reference services we provide to individuals, libraries and schools.
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National Library Schools Collection
The Schools Collection contains fiction and non-fiction books, videos and DVDs. The collection provides resources to support teaching and learning of the New Zealand school curriculum.
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National Newspaper Collection
The National Newspaper Collection contains newspapers from New Zealand, Australia, and the Pacific. It is the country’s most comprehensive collection of historical New Zealand newspapers.
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New Zealand Cartoon Archive
The New Zealand Cartoon Archive includes about 25,000 cartoons reflecting New Zealand society and politics. It contains cartoons and caricatures from the 19th century to the present.
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New Zealand Music, Sound, Audio-visual collection
The New Zealand Music, Sound, Audio-visual collection contains published music and audio-visual materials relating to New Zealand and the Pacific. It includes sound recordings, music scores, videos, CDs and DVDs.
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New Zealand and Pacific Collection
The New Zealand and Pacific Collection includes New Zealand reference materials and New Zealand and Pacific books covering all subjects.
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New Zealand and Pacific Book Collection
The New Zealand and Pacific Book Collection contains more than 300,000 books relating to New Zealand, the Pacific and Antarctica. It is the most comprehensive collection of New Zealand books in the country.
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New Zealand Serials Collection
The New Zealand Serials Collection contains periodicals and magazines from New Zealand, the Pacific, Australia and Great Britain. It is the country’s most comprehensive collection of historical New Zealand periodicals.
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Oral History Centre
The Oral History Centre collection contains oral history interviews and other unpublished recordings. It covers many aspects of New Zealand life.
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Photographic Archive
The Photographic Archive holds images of New Zealand and the Pacific from the 1850s to the present. It includes over 1 million prints, negatives, transparencies and other photographic formats.
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Print Disabilities Collection
Talking books are held in the Print Disabilities Collection. The collection includes fiction and non-fiction titles for people with print disabilities.
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Printed Ephemera Collection
The Printed Ephemera Collection contains published programmes, posters, menus, advertising, pamphlets, and other material relating to New Zealand, the Pacific, and New Zealanders overseas.
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Special Printed Collections
The Special Printed Collections contain about 20,000 rare books and other printed items dating from 1471 onwards. They include accounts of early voyages, English literature, fine printing, Milton and other areas.
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Susan Price Collection
Susan Price gifted her private collection of children’s books to the Library in 1991. It includes Susan’s pick of the best English language children’s books published from 1930 to today.
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Turnbull Formed Collections
The Turnbull Formed Collections are the personal libraries of collectors that have been donated to us. There are about 30 formed collections covering many subjects.
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Turnbull General Collection
The Turnbull General Collection contains 40,000 books related to areas outside New Zealand and the Pacific. It includes works on Milton, and the history of the book.
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Turnbull Library Pictures
Turnbull Library Pictures holds photographic copies of original images from the Alexander Turnbull Library collections. It includes copies of photographs, paintings, drawings and prints, cartoons, maps, posters, and illustrations.
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Bible Society in New Zealand Collection
This collection within the Special Printed Collections consists of early bibles in a range of languages, and additional related material.
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Fletcher Broadside Collection
This collection within the Special Printed Collections consists largely of political material published between 1641 and 1714.
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Fine and trade bindings
The Special Printed Collections include examples of bindings from the 15th century to the present day.
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Society of Mary and Archdiocese of Wellington Rare Book Collection
This collection within the Special Printed Collections consists of rare books originally held in Catholic libraries, archives and convents around New Zealand.
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Incunabula Collection
Incunabula are the earliest printed books, printed between 1450 and 1501. The Turnbull Library’s Incunabula Collection is part of the Special Printed Collections.
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Robert G. Barr Collection of Amateur Journalism
This collection consists largely of the work of amateur journalists and printers. The Barr collection is held in the Turnbull Formed Collections.
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Sir Arthur Howard Bible Collection
This collection within the Special Printed Collections consists of 55 bibles and liturgical texts, most from the 16th century. They illustrate the development of the English ecclesiastical tradition during that time.
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General Assembly Library of New Zealand Rare Book Collection
This collection within the Special Printed Collections consists of rare books originally held in the collection of the General Assembly Library. They range from a 15th-century incunabulum to fine print works of the 20th century.
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English Collection
This collection within the Special Printed Collections consists of rare English books from the 16th to the 20th century.
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Fine Printing Collection
This collection within the Special Printed Collections consists of fine printing from New Zealand and international private presses.
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