Reading Room Policy

Reading Room Policy 

Items permitted:

  • Pencils
  • Notebook or paper
  • Laptops (without a case)
  • Digital cameras
  • Cellphones

Items not permitted:

  • Food and Drinks
  • Pens, highlighters or markers
  • Folders and binders
  • Bags and purses
  • Coats and jackets

To ensure that all items in use in the Reading Room are secure and protected with the intent to preserve them for future use, we have enacted this Reading Room Policy. Most of the material in our holdings are unique, rare, fragile and irreplaceable. Therefore we require that patrons visiting abide by these rules.

  • No food or drinks are permitted. Food and drinks must be kept in a bag and stored in one of the lockers available to patrons. Special accommodations will be made for any individual with a serious medical condition that requires immediate access to water or food.
  • Bags and purses must also be placed in a locker. They are not allowed on or near workstations.
  • Coats and jackets are to be hung up in the coat closet or stored in one of the lockers.
  • Pencils and loose paper can be provided to researchers when needed. All non-permitted items must be stored away in a locker.
  • Photography is allowed, but flash must be turned off.
  • Cellphones are permitted for photography, but they must be in silent mode. No phone calls in the Reading Room, you must step outside to take a call.
  • Please refrain from holding things above the table, all material should lay flat on the table or be in a book cradle.
  • Researchers can request up to three items at a time. For archival material, only one folder may be viewed at a time.
  • When going through a folder, please take care to keep items in the order that they were given.
  • In some cases, nitrile gloves will be required, especially in the case of handling any material from the photography collection.
  • Please do not scan or copy anything without first checking with staff. In most cases, scanning and copying will need to be done by a staff member, and in limited quantities. We will not scan or copy any item that will be damaged in the process.
  • You must sign in at the reception desk upon arrival. Additional instructions for paging and handling will be provided at the beginning of your visit.
  • Researchers/Patrons are expected to return materials to the circulation desk upon completing their research and may not lend or exchange them with other readers.
  • A computer work station is available as a convenience to search our catalog or view digitized lodge files. Researchers/Patrons must refrain from personal browsing or searching. (May move to on-site instructions)
  • Personal books may be brought to one of our work stations but must be registered with the circulation desk upon arrival.
  • Researchers must legibly fill out call slips for each item they request for research materials