The Museum’s David M. Rubenstein National Institute for Holocaust Documentation acquires, preserves, and makes accessible the historical record of the Holocaust and supports the Museum’s wide-ranging efforts in the areas of research, exhibition, publication, education, and memorialization.
Many materials are digitally available to view through the Museum’s Collections Search online catalog. In addition to online resources, members of the public may access archival (including microform) and published resources in the reading room at the David and Fela Shapell Family Collections, Conservation and Research Center (Shapell Center) in Bowie, Maryland, located approximately 20 miles east of the Museum’s Washington, DC, campus. Digitized and published material is also available to view in the reading room on the fifth floor of the Museum building in Washington, DC. On this page you will learn about how to plan your visit and prepare for conducting on-site research in either location.
In addition to the services at the Shapell Center and on the Museum’s fifth floor, the Museum’s Holocaust Survivors and Victims Resource Center staff provides free research and reference services about the fate of individuals virtually and in person on the second floor of the Museum building in Washington, DC to help researchers seeking documentation about individual survivors and victims.
Guidelines for Accessing Materials for In-Person Research
Pre-order Research Materials
To help ensure a successful on-site research visit, you will need to pre-order all of your research materials.
Archival and Historical Published (pre-1953) Resources
To view archival and historical published (pre-1953) resources, including digitized materials that are not available online, you will need to make an appointment for the Shapell Center reading room at least seven days prior to your visit. This material is only available for consultation at the Shapell Center.
Digitized and Recently-published Materials
Researchers in either reading room, at the Shapell Center in Bowie, Maryland or on the fifth floor of the Museum building in downtown Washington, DC, can access publications produced since the 1950s, as well as digitized materials such as oral histories, historical film, and millions of pages of digitized archival copy materials that have restricted access and can only be accessed on-site. Published items may also need to be requested in advance, in the event they need to be transferred from one reading room to the other. Please consult the online catalog to determine the current location of the published item you wish to see and place a transfer request if necessary. Be advised that only certain published (post-1953) materials can be transferred from one location to the other, and that original archival materials, microfiche and historical publications (pre-1953) must be consulted at the Shapell Center.
Objects and Material Culture
For objects, including artwork, textiles, and other examples of material culture, please contact the reference desk as far in advance as possible, but no later than 21 days prior to your visit. Please note that fulfilling requests to view objects is dependent upon staff and space availability, as all viewing requires staff presence. This material is only available for consultation at the Shapell Center. Many objects have been photographed and viewing these digital images may suffice for many researchers’ needs.
Inaccessible Materials
Although we make every effort to make all Museum materials available, there may be factors, including the fragile nature of certain artifacts or collections, or whether the materials are on loan, on exhibit or being prepared for or undergoing conservation treatment or digitization, that may limit access to the materials you wish to see on your preferred timeline.
Remotely Accessible Resources
The Museum provides global access digitally to hundreds of thousands of original and copied archival and published resources as well as other materials documenting the Holocaust. If you are unable to visit a Museum reading room, or would like assistance in finding digital online materials or preparing for an upcoming research visit, please consult our online research tools and then contact the reference desk for assistance if needed. Please be advised that many archival copy collections can only be accessed on-site due to restrictions placed by the source archive.
Hours, Registration, and Appointment Requirements
Read all information on this page carefully before making your appointment. All researchers must register and make an appointment in advance.
All research visitors must first register in the Collections Request system and agree to abide by the Museum’s Terms of Use. All research visitors to the Shapell Center are required to make an appointment in advance, in order to secure a research seat. Due to space constraints, the fifth floor reading room in the Museum building may not be able to accommodate larger groups of researchers. While individual researchers are not required to make appointments to visit the fifth floor, visitors are strongly advised to contact the reference desk in advance of your visit to be sure the materials you wish to consult are available. Given the quiet research environment of both reading rooms and the sensitive nature of our holdings, researchers are asked not to bring young children.
For Archival and Historical Published (pre-1953) Materials (available exclusively at the Shapell Center)
The Shapell Center reading room in Bowie, Maryland, is open to the public, by appointment, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Access is not available on Federal holidays and Yom Kippur. Appointments must be made at least seven days before your visit and can be made up to 90 days in advance.
A limited number of seats are available for each research session, and appointments may fill up quickly. All visitors, including guests accompanying researchers, should make an appointment in the system to ensure access. Due to space constraints, guests of researchers who have not made an appointment may not be able to secure a research seat. Researchers are encouraged to contact the reference desk for assistance.
For Digitized and Recently-published Materials
The reading room on the fifth floor of the Museum building in downtown Washington, DC, is open to the public Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The reading room is closed Wednesdays and Fridays as well as on Federal holidays and Yom Kippur. In this space, researchers can access many publications produced since the 1950s as well as digitized materials such as oral histories, historical film, and millions of pages of digitized archival materials that cannot be accessed remotely. Appointments are advised, but not required to access this reading room. However, researchers are strongly encouraged to contact the reference desk in advance to secure a research seat and help ensure a successful research visit, as some items may need to be requested in advance for transfer between reading rooms.
Viewing Material Culture including Objects, Artwork, and Textiles
Access to these types of materials is provided exclusively to those individuals who need to view the actual materials for their scholarly research. This access can only be provided at the Shapell Center, and will be contingent on staff capacity, the fragility of the requested materials, and other factors. Scholarly researchers can examine such materials only in the Collections Services Suites under the supervision of authorized Museum staff. Object access requires pre-arranged staff handling and supervision for the entirety of the visit. Due to these limitations, these materials are available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Scholarly researchers can make appointments for morning (10 a.m. to 12 p.m.) and/or afternoon (1 p.m. to 3 p.m.) supervised consultation sessions, but requests to see this type of material must be made no later than 21 days prior to a planned research visit. Requests to view material culture items that arrive with fewer than 21 days’ notice will not be honored.
For Audiovisual, Magnetic Media, Motion-picture Film, and Sound Materials
Due to the fragile nature of archival audiovisual and magnetic media on physical carriers, such as reel-to-reel tapes, diskettes, motion picture film, sound records or videocassettes, this material cannot be viewed in either reading room. The Museum is working to digitize this material for purposes of both preservation and access. Please contact the reference desk with any questions about whether and how audiovisual material may be available.
Before You Arrive
Researcher Registration
Researchers preparing to visit the Shapell Center must complete the researcher registration process prior to creating an appointment. To help ensure a positive research experience, please make appointments and contact us with any questions or requests as far in advance of your planned visit as possible. Researchers planning to use archival or published materials in the Shapell Center reading room should review the reading room policies prior to making an appointment.
More information to help you plan your visit, including detailed information about transportation options to the Shapell Center, will be provided after registration. The Shapell Center is located about 20 miles east of the Museum’s downtown campus.
Researchers are not required to make appointments for the fifth floor reading room, but are still asked to complete the researcher registration process in order to access digitized collection materials and post-1953 publications, which may require lead time for transfer in the event they are currently held at the Shapell Center. Although appointments are not required, please contact the reference desk in advance of your visit to secure a research seat and ensure that the materials you wish to see can be made available.
Search Online and Request Materials
The Museum’s online catalog (Collection Search) provides access to many digitized collections. Due to the fragile nature of many Museum collections, we ask that you use digital copies of collections, or images of artifacts, wherever possible rather than requesting access to original materials.
Ordering archival and historical published (pre-1953) materials: This material is only available at the Shapell Center. For archival and published materials, you should request collections or publications directly from the online catalog at least one week prior to your visit . A reference librarian will assist you with this process once your Shapell Center appointment has been confirmed.
Ordering recently-published (post-1953) materials and digitized collections: Visitors should consult the online catalog to confirm the location where the desired materials are currently available. Researchers may need to request that some published material be transferred from one reading room to another, with at least one week’s advance notice. Contact the reference desk with any questions about how to locate, request, and access this material.
Requests to see objects and artifacts: To view objects, artwork, textiles, and other examples of material culture, contact the reference desk as far in advance as possible, but no later than 21 days prior to your planned visit. Please note that a Shapell Center reading room appointment does not guarantee access to this material.
Accessing legally restricted materials: Some materials may have legal access or use restrictions that require you to make advance arrangements with a third party, such as another institution that provided copies of materials to the Museum, before you can see these collections. These restrictions are described in the online catalog records for each collection.
Shapell Center Transportation and Building Access
Location: Once you have a confirmed appointment, instructions for accessing the Shapell Center will be provided.
Identification: Government-issued photo identification is required to access the Shapell Center. You will be denied access without proper identification.
Parking: Street parking is available. Researchers requiring accessible parking should contact the reference team prior to their visit.
Shuttle Service: The Museum provides one morning shuttle from the New Carrollton transit station in time for the opening of the reading room. A shuttle departs the Shapell Center for the New Carrollton station shortly after the reading room closes for the day. Researchers with confirmed research appointments will be provided with instructions for reserving a seat on the shuttle.
Research Groups
Due to limited capacity in both reading rooms, the Museum is unable to accommodate larger groups of researchers at once. All groups are advised to contact the reference desk as far in advance of their visit as possible to see what arrangements may be possible.
During Your Visit
Amenities
Shapell Center Facilities: The Museum provides lockers for personal belongings. Refrigerators, microwaves, and vending machines are available in a lunch and break room. Visitors should bring their own food as dining options near the Shapell Center are limited. Food and drinks may not be consumed in either reading room or anywhere near Museum collection materials.
Copying, Scanning, and Wi-Fi Options: Personal laptop computers and cameras are welcome in both the Shapell Center and the Museum’s fifth floor reading rooms.
A wi-fi network is available throughout both reading rooms for researcher use.
For researchers consulting archival and published materials on microform in the Shapell Center Reading Room, microform stations are enabled with scanners that create digital copies of materials.
Self-service scanning stations are available for use with archival and published paper-based materials.
The Museum will provide free portable USB storage devices for patrons.
For visitors who have arranged to view objects in the Shapell Center Collections Services Suites, photography of artifacts for non-commercial use is permitted. However, the use of monopods, tripods, studio lights, light boxes, or other such equipment, is not permitted.
Health and Safety Precautions: All relevant guidelines from the Museum’s Health and Safety Guidelines apply to the Shapell Center.
Circulation and Interlibrary Loan
No published materials or Museum archival holdings or microfilm can be checked out to the public, nor can they be loaned via interlibrary loan. They are only available to use on-site in the reading rooms. If we do not have published items you are seeking, try contacting your local librarian to determine another source for the published items you are seeking.
Research about Individual Survivors and Victims
There is no single list of Holocaust victims or survivors; tracing the fate of an individual through the Holocaust is a process of piecing together bits of information from a variety of sources. Those planning to undertake family history research at the Shapell Center Reading Room should note that the name of the town where an individual lived prior to the war is often invaluable in identifying the relevant resources in the Museum’s collections at the Shapell Center.
The Museum’s Holocaust Survivors and Victims Resource Center staff provides free research and reference services virtually and on the second floor of the Museum building in Washington, DC, to help researchers seeking documentation about individual survivors and victims. Priority is given to survivors, their families, and the families of victims.
To learn more about the Resource Center, including hours of operation, please see the Resources on Survivors and Victims page.
After Your Visit
How to Cite Museum Resources
To assist researchers in providing appropriate and adequate references and citations to Museum materials reviewed by researchers, we have created a detailed page of guidance on citations.
This Section
Look through a curated list of frequently searched collection types and themes.