Oakland History Room Oakland Public Library

The Oakland History Room of the Oakland Public Library is an important center for study of the history and current development of the East Bay. It is housed on the second floor of the Main Library at 125-14th Street. Its collection contains a wide variety of materials relating to the history of Oakland and the larger Bay Area, including books, magazines, pamphlets, newspaper clippings, photographs, postcards, sheet music, trade catalogs, and scrapbooks. Particular strengths of the collection and services include biographical and genealogical resources; images of Oakland, Emeryville and Piedmont; collections by local authors such as Jack London, Juanita Miller and Ina Coolbrith; resources for researching Oakland’s houses and buildings; primary materials related to arts and culture, and sources for the study of local history. Their collection of photographs provide several key images of the East Bay hills not found anywhere else.

Perhaps the most important part of the History Room is the dedicated staff that is available to help you whether you call, email, or just drop in. Material is well-organized and usually available in very short order. The Oakland History Room is open seven days a week. For hours of operation and services, go to:
http://www.oaklandlibrary.org/Locations.htm