For tax preparation info, please call 919-695-7548. More info >
All library locations and services will be closed on Friday, March 29, and Saturday, March 30, for the spring holiday.
Behind-the-scenes software update - you can now log in to the online catalog, view your account, and place holds. Phone renewals are not available yet - for now, you can renew online or by contacting us.

External resources

Digital Resources

Digital NC
Materials from our collection hosted online by the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center. Explore original materials from 299 other libraries, museums, and archives across North Carolina.

Bull City 150
The mission of Bull City 150 is to invite Durhamites to reckon with the racial and economic injustices of the past 150 years and commit to building a more equitable future. Bull City 150 uses public history exhibitions to do extensive community engagement and to facilitate educational opportunities, deep dialogue, and a collective reckoning.

Hacking Into History: Reckoning with Racial Covenants in Durham
A community-driven project to tell the story and impact of racially restrictive agreements contained in property deeds in Durham, North Carolina, using public records information and archival documentation.

Durham’s Black Wall Street
A digital exhibit created through the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity at Duke University.

Three Black Wall Streets
An interactive exhibit created to bring attention to vibrant Black communities that were prosperous and self-sustaining, but which no longer exist. Durham’s Black Wall Street is featured alongside Tulsa, OK and Richmond, VA.

Royal Ice Cream Sit-In
The Southern Foodways Alliance produced a film about the Royal Ice Cream Sit-in in Durham, North Carolina. Part of the Virtual Martin Luther King, Jr. Project out of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at NC State University.

Our Community Stories
The “Our Community Stories” series is a dedicated space for sharing histories from Durham’s marginalized and underrepresented communities. The series is a program provided by the Community Engagement division of the Neighborhood Improvement Services Department at the City of Durham.

Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
The NDLDT promotes the adoption, creation, use, dissemination and preservation of electronic theses and dissertations from all fields.

NC Literary Map
Visit the Durham page of the NC Literary Map which provides information on authors associated with Durham and literature mentioning or taking place in Durham, including both fiction and nonfiction.

Mapping Inequality
Redlining maps for more than 300 U.S. cities.

Local Historic Sites and Museums

Local University Resources

Duke University Libraries
Duke’s David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library’s Durham-related collections include:

Duke University Medical Center Archives
Separate from the university library system, the Medical Center Archives house the legal, administrative and historical records of Duke Medical Center and Health System, as well as personal manuscripts, departmental records, photographs, and other materials related to the center.

North Carolina Central University Libraries
NCCU’s James E. Shepard Memorial Library’s Durham-related collections include:

North Carolina State University Libraries
NC State University Libraries’ Rare and Unique Digital Collections Documenting NC State and North Carolina through historic photographs, architectural drawings, yearbooks, archival materials, and more.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
UNC’s Wilson Special Collections Library:

State and Local Government Resources

Register of Deeds
Land transaction documents and vital and other public records.

The State Archives of North Carolina
Collects, preserves, and provides public access to historically significant archival materials relating to North Carolina.

The State Library of North Carolina
Includes an extensive library of North Carolina genealogy materials.

National Resources

Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Divisions
The Library of Congress owns hundreds of photos of Durham and Durham County.

National Archives and Records Administration
Preserves important documents and materials created in the course of United States government’s business. These records may help if you are researching your family’s history, need to prove a veteran’s military service, or are researching a historical topic.