About The Field Museum

The Field Museum resides on the ancestral homelands of the Three Fires Confederacy: The Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi. The area was also a site of trade, gathering and healing for more than a dozen other Native tribes. Illinois is currently home to more than 100,000 tribal members. Our respect and gratitude to the many Native people who live here today, as well as their ancestors.

The Field Museum is an educational institution concerned with the diversity and relationships in nature and among cultures. It provides collection-based research and learning for greater public understanding and appreciation of the world in which we live. Its collections, public learning programs, and research are inseparably linked to serve a diverse public of varied ages, backgrounds and knowledge.

The Field Museum Library

The formation of The Field Museum Library’s collections began in 1894 with initial transfers of books from the libraries of various departments of the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893. Currently, the Library serves the Museum’s staff, visiting scholars and the general public. The Field's photo image collection comprises over 250,000 images in the areas of Anthropology, Botany, Geology, Zoology and historical content related to the subject of natural history. The collection also documents the history and architecture of the Museum, its exhibitions, staff and scientific expeditions.

More information about the Field Museum Library can be found here.

If you're interested in viewing more of the Field Museum's historical images,

you can find them on the Illinois Digital Archives:

World's Columbian Exposition

Urban Landscapes of Illinois

History of Exhibitions at the Field Museum 1921–1959