Here are seven online libraries with specialized collections that you can visit right now to honor the contributions of the US libraries and library workers.
Digital Public Library of America
The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) is a free online collection of more than 36 million digital materials from libraries, museums, and archives. Its digital collections and primary sources cover all fields, from the influenza pandemic in 1918 to the golden age of comic books.
Nautical Archaeology Digital Library
If you are interested in shipwrecks, the Nautical Archaeology Digital Library has you covered. The library is a collaboration of ShipLAB and Texas A&M University, containing ancient ship models and searchable shipwreck databases.
CIA’s FOIA Electronic Reading Room
If looking for digital data makes you feel like a secret agent, just head to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)’s Freedom of Information Act Electronic Reading Room. The digital collection provides items from FOIA and CIA release programs, including a collection dedicated to the oldest classified documents in the US and more than 50 years of CIA information on UFOs.
Biodiversity Heritage Library
The Biodiversity Heritage Library offers open access to biodiversity literature. It is home to curated collections with books from field diaries from explorations of Antarctica to Charles Darwin’s personal collection.
New York Public Library
The online collection of New York Public Library contains about 890,000 digital items. It provides archives and manuscripts, including books, photographs, prints, and more unique collections, such as a massive database of more than 17,000 historical restaurant menus.
Getty Publications Virtual Library
The Getty Publications Virtual Library is home to an impressive collection of more than 300 publications of art books, which you can read and download for free, including some that are out of print.
National Library of Medicine
The National Library of Medicine provides a huge collection of digitized materials that are related to health and disease. Through its online database, patrons can read about the history of forensic medicine, view the earliest anatomical drawings, and discover an exhibition that is dedicated to the accomplishments of women physicians.