Ingalls Library and Museum Archives
The Ingalls Library and Museum Archives are the research center of the museum. We are open to the public and ready to help with your art historical research. With more than 560,000 volumes and extensive electronic resources, the Ingalls Library is one of the largest and most comprehensive art research libraries in the country.
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Ingalls Library and Museum Archives
11150 East Boulevard, Cleveland, OH 44106
The Ingalls Library is closed the weeks of Christmas and New Year’s, December 23, 2024–January 3, 2025.
Hours
- Tuesday–Friday10:00 a.m.–4:50 p.m.
- Monday, Saturday, SundayClosed
Registration and Circulation
The Ingalls Library is a closed stacks, noncirculating library. Material requested in advance is paged every 90 minutes. Registration is required to use library and archives materials.
Museum Archives
The Museum Archives documents the history of the museum and the artistic legacy of Northeast Ohio.
Library and Archives Resources
Policies
Studying Rare and Archives Collection Materials at the Ingalls Library and Archives
Materials from the rare book collection or the Museum Archives are studied in the special collections reading room under the supervision of library and archives staff.
Readers wishing to study materials from the archives or rare book collection are encouraged to make an appointment in advance. It is usually possible to accommodate readers without appointments, but depending on staff availability, paging times, and other appointments, same-day requests are not guaranteed. Furthermore, not all archives collections are open to the public. By calling ahead, patrons can make certain the desired materials are available.
For a complete overview of applicable policies and procedures, please consult the library’s Guidelines on Studying Rare and Archives Collection Materials.
The staff of the Cleveland Museum of Art cannot provide appraisals of works of art or books for insurance or sales purposes. Please consult the following for referrals to appropriate resources:
The collection development policy is an organic document that is revisited every three years in order to ensure its currency. The collection development policy serves the following functions:
1) To summarize the scope and nature of existing collections
2) To facilitate coordination of ongoing collection development efforts
3) To provide the basis for cooperation with other institutions
4) To outline collection development objectives
Ingalls Library Online Database Restrictions
The U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S. Code) governs the making of copies of copyrighted materials. The person using the databases offered here is liable for any infringement.
Following are general restrictions on the use of electronic databases. Others may also apply. Please request information from the director of the library about restrictions associated with specific databases offered by the library:- Access is allowed only to employees of this institution at the employee’s desktop, or when allowed to authorized visitors at the library’s online public access terminals.
- Copies of data from the databases may be made as long as they do not contain substantial or significant segments of the databases.
- Information from the databases may not be used for interlibrary lending, including the provision of copies to other libraries, institutions, or persons. No part of the databases may be transmitted over the internet.
- Databases may be used only for noncommercial purposes, such as criticism, comment, news reporting, research, study, teaching, lecturing, and scholarship.
It is your responsibility to observe the legal use of copyrighted data and information.
The Ingalls Library and Museum Archives reaffirms and emphatically supports the CMA’s DEI goals, as embodied in the 2018 plan. In support of these efforts, the library and archives is aggressively expanding our collections, focusing on BIPOC and underrepresented groups and addressing these areas in our biannual review of our collection development policy. In addition to the acquisition of new material, we review and update descriptions of library and archival materials for inclusive language and reparative description. The Ingalls Library and Museum Archives must be a space welcoming to new voices, new ideas, and new endeavors to become a locus for engagement within and outside the library and the museum.
The Ingalls Library and Museum Archives welcomes donations of funds or materials to augment the collections. Contact acquisitions at ingallslibrary@clevelandart.org, and provide us with your contact information. Please be ready to provide us with an inventory of the items you are considering for donation.
- Library patrons and visitors must complete a registration form. This can be done in advance by completing the Patron Registration Form, which is available here.
- Library and archival material may not be removed from the premises. Personal materials are subject to search upon leaving.
- Anyone who removes materials from the Ingalls Library without authorization will lose all privileges and may be assessed a fine and any replacement costs of the material.
- Please turn off or silence your cell phone while using the library.
- Food may not be brought into or consumed in the library. Beverages in a lidded container may be consumed in the reading room and seminar room.
- Library terminals are provided for short-term use limited to 30 minutes.
- Library visitors are expected to use personal laptop computers for long-term research and personal needs while in the library.
- The use of personal scanners is not allowed in the library. Book edge scanners are available for patron use in the reference room.
- Never mark pages, use Post-It notes, or write on library materials.
In the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room
Materials from the Rare Book Collection or the Museum Archives are studied in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room, located in the Ingalls Library, under the supervision of library staff. For a complete overview of applicable policies and procedures please consult the library’s Guidelines on Studying Rare and Archives Collection Materials.
In the Museum Archives
- The museum archivist determines the collections that are available. Depending on the nature of the materials being studied, researchers may use one box or one folder at a time. Materials must be returned to the Special Collections Reading Room attendant before requesting another box or folder.
- Do not mark pages, use Post-It notes, or write on archival materials.
- Researchers must use pencil for taking notes.
- Researchers may be asked to wear cotton or nitrile gloves when handling certain types of materials.
- Materials must be kept in the order in which they are found within each box and folder.
- Reproduction of archival material is at the discretion of the archivist.
- Citations should acknowledge the Cleveland Museum of Art Archives and note the collection name, box number, folder title, and date.
Loss of Privileges
- Access to the Ingalls Library and Museum Archives is granted at the sole discretion of the library’s staff and such access may be denied or revoked.
- Abuse of these regulations and policies will result in immediate withdrawal of all ID and password access privileges, loss of library privileges, and will be reported to the appropriate authority.
- Visitors to the Ingalls Library and Museum Archives agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Cleveland Museum of Art, its officers, trustees, and employees from and against all claims or actions arising out of or related to such visitor’s (a) use of library or archived items; and (b) violation of this use agreement or any of the rules or procedures of the Ingalls Library or Museum Archives.
Contact Us
Haven’t found what you’re looking for? Feel free to contact either an archivist at archives@clevelandart.org or a reference librarian at reference@clevelandart.org.
