Archives & Special Collections

Welcome to Archives & Special Collections (A&SC), one of the largest archives that documents Western Pennsylvania history. In our collections, you’ll find historic documents, photographs, maps, rare books, newspapers, audio and video recordings, and much more. Do you have questions or can’t find what you’re looking for? Please contact us so one of our expert staff members can help you.

Archives & Special Collections Virtual Tour

NOTE: The Archives and Special Collections Reading Room at Thomas Boulevard is now open by appointment only. Appointments are for Pitt affiliates only and require at least 48 hours advanced notice. The number of patrons and staff will be limited to maintain social distancing. Please note that all patrons must wear a self-provided mask and will be supplied with gloves. As part of the University of Pittsburgh's efforts to ensure a safe and healthy environment for all employees and visitors on campus, a self-attestation of symptoms must be completed for every day an individual comes to the campus for any reason and for any length of time. Contact us to request an appointment. One of our archivists will follow-up with you to schedule your appointment.

Browse Our Digital Collections Browse Our Finding Aids

Explore our collections further!

John James Audubon's plate of 2 purple herons.

ULS Digital Collections

We’ve digitized thousands of records from our collections, and you can see them all here! Search our Audubon prints, get acquainted with the City Photographer Collection, or just peruse the collection guides for our materials.

Map of Fort Pitt and parts adjacent with both rivers from 1761.

Historic Pittsburgh

Interested in more Pittsburgh history? We work in partnership with other organizations in the area, like the Heinz History Center, to bring you more content on our city. Search by institution, topic, or format to find exactly what you want.

Nearly 5,000 students assembled to form the Living Panther to show Pitt Spirit. April 1920

Documenting Pitt

Want to know what the Cathedral of Learning looked like while under construction? Maybe find yourself in your college yearbook? Or learn what Pitt students were talking about in the 1920s? It’s all here for you, from digitized yearbooks to historic photographs to a full run of the Pitt News, and much more. Hail to Pitt!

News

It Came from the Archives! Unearthed treasures from the George A. Romero Archival Collection

Horror Studies - It Came from the Archives!

Join Horror Studies Collection Coordinator Ben Rubin and Visiting Researcher Adam Hart on Tuesday, February 9 from 7-8 pm as they discuss their favorite and most significant discoveries from processing the George A. Romero Archival Collection. Join as they will show off rare and never before seen materials that will shed new light onto his classic films as well as reveal the films... more

Beyond the Bride of Frankenstein: Monsters and Other Fearsome Women

Horror Studies Webinar Series presents: Panel featuring Melanie Anderson, Lisa Kroger, and Lisa Morton. Join us on Monday, January 25 at 7- 8 pm.

The Revolution They Remember

You are invited to the virtual premiere of the feature-length documentary The Revolution They Remember on Thursday, November 12, 2020 from 7–9:30 p.m. View the trailer here!

Registration is required. Click here for more information about the film and to register for the premiere.

The August Wilson Archive

We are thrilled to announce we have acquired the archive of the late playwright and Pittsburgh native son August Wilson, best known for his unprecedented American Century Cycle —ten plays that convey the Black experience in each decade of the 20th century. All ten of the plays have had Broadway productions and two earned Wilson the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. For more info visit here.