Montana Historical Society library and archives to reopen to the public on March 17

After being closed for more than three years, the Montana Historical Society’s Larry Len and LeAnne Peterson Library and Archives are set to reopen to the public on March 17.

The Historical Society is hosting a free open house for the public on Friday, March 13, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. to celebrate the long-awaited reopening and will have staff on hand to demonstrate some of the new research tools added, including new microfilm readers, an overhead book scanner and an assisted reading device.

The Montana Historical Society said since the Montana Heritage Center opened in early December, staff have spent many hours unpacking, cleaning and organizing the collections, which were wrapped and protected while construction of the facility was ongoing.

The updated library and archives are located on the first floor of the Heritage Center adjacent to the Charles M. Russell Gallery. It now includes larger research areas, a conference room and new technology.

The library and archives include more than 1.2 million photographs, 10,000 moving images, 470 manuscript collections, 2,800 small collections, 2,000 oral histories and thousands of government records and other materials. On-site access is available through the Reference Room, and some digitized materials are available online.

At the March 13 open house, small displays of materials from the archives will be available and staff will be on hand to answer questions.

“We are so excited to finally welcome researchers and the public back into the Library and Archives,” said Roberta Gebhardt, the program manager for the library and archives. “Our team has worked hard to get the collections ready, and we can’t wait to share this beautiful new space with the people of Montana.”

The library and archives closed down in December 2022 as construction of the Montana Heritage Center got underway.

Research appointments can be booked online at mths.mt.gov/research or by emailing mthslibrary@mt.gov or calling (406) 444-2681.