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Searching for images at The Bancroft Library: Home

A guide to help researchers find images using different image databases, tools, and search techniques.

The basics of image research at The Bancroft Library

Class of 1914 Senior Pilgrimage at base of Campanile., UC Berkeley campus events, UARC PIC 4:309
Courtesy of The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

The Bancroft Library has extensive collections, many of which are available for research. Though not all of our images are accessible online, many Bancroft images are discoverable using online tools.

Researchers can learn more about The Bancroft Library’s collections by searching UC Library Search, UC Berkley's online catalog. Most of our collections are not cataloged at the image level, however many of our collections have finding aids, which list items at the container, folder or item level. If there is an online finding aid, you will find a link in the catalog record in the "links" section. All of our online finding aids are accessible via the Online Archive of California. Other finding aids are available only in the library.

Berkeley Library Digital Collections

The Berkeley Digital Collections database allows a researcher to search for images across the various UC Berkeley digital collections in one spot.  It has a vast variety of materials represented: newspapers, photographs, maps, historical documents, etc.  You can start your search here.

 

You can browse the collections or start a new search.  This database does have an easy download capability if you find an interesting image.

UC Library Search

Calisphere

Other image sites

Online Archive of California

Two popular finding aids for Bancroft image searches on the OAC are:

Fang Family San Francisco Examiner Photograph Archive Negative Files, circa 1930-2000

Portrait File of The Bancroft Library (to find the list of portraits, click on "Additional collection guides" then "list of contents.")

Research at the Bancroft

Requesting duplication and permission

Citations

Please cite Bancroft images in the following way:

[Identification of specific item], [Name of collection], [Call number of collection]. Courtesy of The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

All pictorial collection call numbers are in the form of BANC PIC XXXX.XXX--XXX.  University Archives call numbers are in the form of UARC PIC XX : XXX.

Contacts

Please use the contact list below for the correct person to answer your question:

For general inquiry contact bancref-library@berkeley.edu

For aeon setup/log-in issues, and other Aeon account questions contact banc-aeon@berkeley.edu

For duplication specific questions contact lkirwan@berkeley.edu

For permission and image use contact scholcomm@berkeley.edu