| University of Minnesota Libraries | |
|---|---|
![]() Wilson Library, largest in the system  | |
| Location | United States | 
| Type | Academic library | 
| Established | 1851 | 
| Branches | 12 | 
| Collection | |
| Size | 7.7 million volumes[1] 119,770 serial subscriptions[1]  | 
| Access and use | |
| Population served | 55,931 faculty, staff and students and the state of Minnesota 1.6 million visits[1]  | 
| Other information | |
| Budget | $41,225,580 annually[2] | 
| Director | Lisa German | 
| Employees | 391[2] | 
| Website | lib | 
The University of Minnesota Libraries is the library system of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus, operating at 12 facilities in and around Minneapolis–Saint Paul. It has over 8 million volumes and 119,000 serial titles that are collected, maintained and made accessible.[1] The system is the 17th largest academic library in North America[2] and the 20th largest library in the United States.[3] While the system's primary mission is to serve faculty, staff and students, because the university is a public institution of higher education its libraries are also open to the public.
The Libraries hold a variety of notable, specialized and unusual collections. Examples include the world's largest assembly of materials on Sherlock Holmes and his creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle;[4][5] the Kerlan Collection of over 100,000 children's books;[6] the Hess Collection, one of North America's largest collections of dime novels, story papers and pulp fiction;[7][8] the James Ford Bell Library of rare maps, books and manuscripts,[9] and the seventh largest law library in the United States, including over 1 million volumes and personal papers such as those of Clarence Darrow.[10]
The system is a Federal Depository Library, a State of Minnesota Depository Library and United Nations Depository Library. Among research institutions, it maintains the second-largest collection of government documents in North America.[11] The University of Minnesota was awarded the National Medal for Museum and Library Service in 2017.[12]
Library buildings and collections



- Elmer L. Andersen Library
- Charles Babbage Institute
 - Children's Literature Research Collection — includes the Kerlan Collection
 - Givens Collection of African American Literature
 - Immigration History Research Center Archives
 - James Ford Bell Library
 - Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies
 - Kautz Family YMCA Archives
 - Nathan and Theresa Berman Upper Midwest Jewish Archives (UMJA)
 - Northwest Architectural Archives
 - Sherlock Holmes Collections
 - Social Welfare History Archives
 - Special Collections and Rare Books
 - University of Minnesota Archives
 
 - Law Library, Law School
 - Music Library, School of Music
 - Wilson Library
- Ames Library of South Asia
 - Business Reference Library
 - East Asian Library
 - Government Publications Library
 - John R. Borchert Map Library
 
 
- Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library, Rapson Hall
 - Health Sciences Library, Phillips-Wangensteen Building
- Wangensteen Historical Library of Biology and Medicine, Phillips-Wangensteen Building
 
 - Eric Sevareid Journalism Library, Murphy Hall
 - Mathematics Library, Vincent Hall
 - Walter Library
- Digital Technology Center
 - Science and Engineering Library
 
 
- Magrath Library
- Kirschner Collection
 
 - Natural Resources Library, Hodson Hall
 
- Off-Campus Locations
 
- Andersen Horticultural Library at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Chanhassen, Minnesota
 
Services
The library system makes various services available to faculty, staff and students such as:
- Alumni and Visitor Services
 - Copyright Consultation
 - Instructor and Researcher Support
 - Peer Research Consultants
 - Scanning & Digitization Services
 
The system also offers services to citizens in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota through MINITEX, a publicly funded program that supports academic, state government, public, school and specialized libraries in the region.
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 "University of Minnesota Libraries Facts and Figures". University of Minnesota. 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
 - 1 2 3 "ARL Statistics 2008–2009" (PDF). Association of Research Libraries, Washington DC. 2011. p. 74. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 12, 2011. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
 - ↑ "The Nation's Largest Libraries: A Listing by Volumes Held". American Library Association, Chicago. 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
 - ↑ Baenen, Jeff (December 18, 2009). "Investigate Sherlock Holmes in Minnesota". The San Francisco Chronicle. San Francisco. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
 - ↑ Lemanczyk, Sarah (December 21, 2011). "Sherlock's Archive". Studio 360. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
 - ↑ Karen Nelson Hoyle (November 1978). "The Kerlan Collection". Children's Literature Association Quarterly. 3 (1–2): 13. doi:10.1353/chq.0.0642. S2CID 144666744.
 - ↑ "The Hess Collection". University of Minnesota. 2008. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
 - ↑ "Stanford's Holdings and Other Major Dime Novel Collections". Stanford University. 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
 - ↑ "James Ford Bell Library". University of Minnesota. 2010. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
 - ↑ "Law School Profile". University of Minnesota. December 11, 2011. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
 - ↑ ARL Statistics, p. 79
 - ↑ "2017 National Medal Winners". Imls.gov. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
 
