Free and open to all

Sep 10, 2026–Jan 02, 2027

At the Newberry – Hanson Gallery

Collecting Stories provides a glimpse into the Newberry's collection by exploring how our collection is built. This exhibition will pair recent acquisitions alongside pre-existing items from the collection to show how collecting at the library both enhances our collection and allows us to expand the scope of stories the Newberry can tell. The pairings create their own dynamic that speaks to how this increasingly diverse collection continues to evolve, generating new stories over time.

Explore how the new acquisitions add dimension to the Newberry's major collecting areas:

American History and Culture

American Indian and Indigenous Studies

Chicago and the Midwest

Genealogy and Local History

History of the Book

Maps, Travel, and Exploration

Medieval, Renaissance, and Early Modern Studies

Modern Manuscripts and Archives

Performance Arts

Postcards

Religion

CURATORS

Jill Austin, former Vice President of Public Engagement, The Newberry Library.

Jo Ellen McKillop Dickie, Reference Services Librarian and Selector for Reference.

Jill Gage, Custodian of the John M. Wing Foundation on the History of Printing and Bibliographer for British Literature and History.

Will Hansen, Roger and Julie Baskes Vice President for Collection and Library Services, and Curator of Americana.

Alison Hinderliter, Lloyd Lewis Curator of Modern Manuscripts and Selector for Modern Music.

Analú López, Ayer Librarian and Assistant Curator of American Indian and Indigenous Studies.

Matthew Rutherford, Curator of Genealogy and Local History.

Suzanne Karr Schmidt, George Amos Poole III Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts.

David Weimer, Robert A. Holland Curator of Maps and Director of the Hermon Dunlap Smith Center for the History of Cartography.

MORE ABOUT THE SPACE

The Hanson Gallery is a small, intimate space. Exhibitions mounted there typically include 12-24 items, allowing visitors a glimpse of what the Newberry’s vast collections have to offer. Hanson exhibitions are often modest thematic presentations that draw from a range of the library's collections or interpretive explorations that are built around single items. Examples of past exhibitions include: Wheels and Indigenous Portraits Unbound. Click here to view a photo of the gallery.