Library & Archives Hours
10am - 4:30pm
Tuesday - Friday
and the 1st and 3rd Saturday of each month
Closed Sunday, Monday, and some Saturdays (see above)

Visitors who wish to use the Library and Archives are asked to consult the online catalog and to e-mail citations for material needed for research. If you have questions or need further assistance, please e-mail us at library[at]monh.org or call 781-457-4109. Reference and photocopying services are available.

Quick links to:
Library catalog
Online Collection of Objects and Archival Items
National Heritage Museum blog


New! Newly cataloged items added to WorldCat and our online catalog


Bibliographies on Anti-Masonry
On display in our past exhibition, Freemasonry Unmasked!: Anti-Masonic Collections in the Van Gorden-Williams Library and Archives, were many examples of anti-Masonic literature from the Library and Archives collection. Most contain misinformation or outlandish claims about Freemasonry. We’ve put together two bibliographies to help those interested learn more about Freemasonry. These books and articles address the history of anti-Masonry and trace the roots of anti-Masonic claims. Many of these resources were used in the research that was done for Freemasonry Unmasked!



About the Library and Archives
The Van Gorden-Williams Library and Archives serves the Masonic community as a repository of the history of Freemasonry and as a research facility. It preserves Masonic and fraternal history in many formats, available to the public, to researchers, and to Masonic scholars. Its other major collecting area is American history. The Library and Archives is always interested in considering potential donations.

The Van Gorden-Williams Library collections number over 60,000 volumes, including 1,600 periodical titles. The Archives collections include over 2,000 cubic feet of material. Visitors are welcome to use the materials in the library's reading room. Our professional staff is always there to assist, at whatever level of interest the visitor may bring. More information about the Library and Archives collections is available here.

In addition to the research collection, the library holds the Wallace M. Gage Collection, consisting of approximately 700 Masonic books generously donated to the library in 2001 by Mr. Gage.  Books in the Gage Collection may be checked out for a one-month period by Masons living in the local area.


Past Exhibitions in the Library & Archives Reading Room





Freemasonry Unmasked!: Anti-Masonic Collections in the Van Gorden-Williams Library and Archives







A Penny for Your Thoughts: Postcards from the Golden Age, 1898-1918