Welcome to Special Collections & Archives!

The Special Collections & Archives Department at Haverhill Public Library maintains a wide variety of local history and genealogical resources, in both physical and digital forms. Highlights of the collections include:

  • John Greenleaf Whittier Collection
  • Haverhill Collection of Local History
  • Pecker Collection of Regional History & Genealogy
  • Senter Digital Archive
  • Much, much more!

Special Collections has different open hours than the rest of the library, but our online resources are always available! Click on the images below for Special Collections news and to learn more about our collections.

Unable to come in? We accept obituary and research requests online:
Submit a Research Request

Special Collections News

Special Collections

Rare Shoe Publications Now Online

We are delighted to announce a new digital collection of rare shoe industry books, available on Internet Archive! The collection is a sample of our shoe industry materials and includes a variety of early shoemaking publications, such as lasting manuals, a treatise on uncommon foot shapes, a shoe manufacturing machinery guide, and a retailer catalog. […]

Special Collections

Bradford College Collection Photos

We are happy to announce the addition of Bradford College photographs to the Senter Digital Archive! As part of an ongoing project to make our archival collections discoverable, we have been working on our largest one, the Bradford College Collection. The materials in this collection were transferred to the Haverhill Public Library following the closure […]

Finding Aids & Catalogs

Finding Aids

Research Our Archival Holdings

Online Catalog

Search our catalog for Special Collections materials!

Online Research Resources

Links for history & genealogy researchers.

Digital Collections

Digitized Shoe Industry Publications

A collection of rare shoe industry publications that we have digitized and made available online!

Haverhill High School Yearbooks

Browse virtual copies of Haverhill High School, Haverhill Trade School, and Saint James.

Senter Digital Archive

Browse thousands of digitized images of historical Haverhill people, places, and events.

Print Materials of Interest

John Greenleaf Whittier Collection

Whittier-related publications, artwork, and more in the Donald C. Freeman Whittier Room.

Historical Newspapers

Papers for in-person viewing in print and on microfilm.

Magazines & Newsletters

Magazines, journals, and newsletters available in print.

History & Genealogy Digital Resources

Ancestry: Library Edition

Access from Library Only

Heritage Quest Online

Access from Anywhere with HPL Library Card

New England Quarterly

Access from Library Only

Digital Common-wealth

Digitized Collections Across Massachusetts

Registry of Deeds

Trace your house history with the Southern Essex County Registry of Deeds.

All Digital Resources

A List of All Digital Resources Available at HPL

Research Aids & Services

Obituary Searches

Help Locating Local Obituaries

Research Requests

Librarian-aided Research Assistance

How to Use Special Collections

Research Guide

History of Special Collections

Since its inception in 1875, the Haverhill Public Library has maintained a collection of books relating to local history, genealogy, and native poet John Greenleaf Whittier. Shortly after the library’s inception 1873, the local Whittier Club began an official Whittier Collection at the Library around 1887. In 1916, the Pecker Collection, dedicated to New England, state, and town histories, was started and was later expanded in 1932 to include family histories and genealogical material. In 1923, the Haverhill Collection was formally established to preserve existing library material and to collect additional material for future generations. In 1969, with the construction of a new library building, plans called for two rooms to house the then 20,700 volumes that made up the Whittier, Local History, and Genealogy collections. In 1997, with the renovation of the library, Special Collections was moved to the Third Floor where it presently resides.