George Peabody Library

George Peabody Library Formerly the Library of the Peabody Institute of the City of Baltimore, the library’s collection dates from the founding of the Peabody Institute in 1857.

George Peabody Library at Johns Hopkins University is an essential space for teaching and research and widely recognized as one of the most beautiful library spaces in the world. In that year, George Peabody, a Massachusetts-born philanthropist, dedicated the Peabody Institute to the citizens of Baltimore in appreciation of their “kindness and hospitality.”

The library building opened in 1878 and

was designed by Baltimore architect Edmund G. Lind, in collaboration with the Peabody Institute’s first provost, Dr. Nathaniel H. Morison. The stack room contains five tiers of ornamental cast-iron balconies, which rise dramatically to the skylight 61 feet above the floor. The library contains 300,000 volumes, mainly from the 19th century, with strengths in religion, British art, architecture, topography and history; American history, biography, and literature; Romance languages and literature; history of science; and geography, exploration, and travel.

05/08/2026

Don your best flapper and zoot suit attire for an evening of Prohibition-era intrigue brought to you by the Murder Mystery Company in Baltimore!

Evergreen’s historic Carriage House will transform into the Dunn Speakeasy to host the wedding of two rival mafia families. But in this “married to the mob” event, someone is bound to lose power, which means someone else will lose their life! Solve this case with your fellow detectives during this interactive, Clue-style comedic event. Drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be served prior to the performance.

Register at https://evergreen-museum-library.vbotickets.com/event/murder_mystery_at_evergreen/181079

12/23/2024

Attention Blue Jays- don't forget that starting December 24th, the MSE Library Annex, Brody Learning Commons, Hutzler Reading Room, Hodson Hall, and George Peabody Library will have adjusted hours for winter break!⁠

From December 24th through January 1st the MSE Library Annex, Brody Learning Commons, Hutzler Reading Room, and Hodson Hall will be CLOSED. On January 2nd, these buildings will switch to our intersession hours.

The George Peabody Library will be closed tomorrow, December 20th through January 4th, and will revert to normal hours on January 5th.

We hope you have a restful and rejuvenating holiday season! ❄️

11/15/2024

Earle Havens leads the Virginia Fox Stern Center for the History of the Book in the Renaissance at Johns Hopkins, empowering graduate students to delve into rare books and manuscripts. His innovative approach fosters hands-on experiences and interdisciplinary research, ensuring the legacy of Renaissance scholarship thrives.

Come visit our latest exhibition, "Gertrude Stein in Circles: Spheres of Life and Writing," showcasing the Johns Hopkins...
11/15/2024

Come visit our latest exhibition, "Gertrude Stein in Circles: Spheres of Life and Writing," showcasing the Johns Hopkins Sheridan Libraries’ Robert A. Wilson Collection of rarely exhibited first editions, drafts, correspondence, photographs, and ephemera linked to Hopkins "almost" alum Gertrude Stein.

https://www.library.jhu.edu/gertrude-stein/

Discover how the pioneering Jewish-American writer fostered avant-garde connections throughout her lifetime and explore her ongoing legacy as a beacon for artists, writers, and LGBTQ+ communities. On view through March 2.

Exhibit explores the many facets of modernist matriarch Gertrude Stein, who will be the subject of a conversation on Nov. 20 with distant cousin and scholar Phoebe Stein and rare books curator Gabrielle Dean

03/27/2024

THIS THURSDAY: Please join us at the Peabody Library on March 28th as community artists Mama Sallah Jenkins and Prof. Unique Mical Robinson activate Baltimore's "Cathedral of Books" through procession, poetry, spoken word, and music inspired by the work of Elizabeth Talford Scott.

Register now at jhu.libcal.com/event/12053709.

A Baltimore quilt artist, Talford Scott (1916–2011) used quilts and other textiles to tell stories and preserve memories. You can see two of her prayer quilts in conversation with Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Library (1878) in “Reverberations: Disruption and Healing Through the Hand of Elizabeth Talford Scott,” on view in Alcove 1 of the Reading Room.

This installation is part of the Elizabeth Talford Scott Initiative: No Stone Left Unturned, which brings together nine institutions across Baltimore City to examine the work, life, and influence of the artist.

📷 Portrait of Elizabeth Talford Scott, 1977, Carl Clark. Collection of George Ciscle, Baltimore, MD. ©Carl Clark, Courtesy the estate of Carl Clark/Linda Day Clark

10/17/2023

SUNDAY OCTOBER 29TH: Join us for the opening of Ethel's Place: Celebrating Ethel Ennis, Baltimore's First Lady of Jazz.

This exhibition invites visitors to explore each era of jazz vocalist Ethel Ennis' remarkable life, and highlights some 130 items drawn from the Ethel Ennis and Earl Arnett Collection that trace how Ennis connected with audiences worldwide while pioneering a music career deeply rooted in her hometown.

4:00 PM Program

* Remarks by George "Doc" Manning, founding host of WEAA's jazz program "In the Tradition"

* Performances by vocalist Charenee Wade with the Peabody Jazz Ensemble

5:00 Reception

Doors open at 3:30 PM, $5 optional valet

Please register your attendance at jhu.libcal.com/calendar/events/ethel-ennis

For disability accommodations contact Mary Casey, 443-356-5022 or [email protected].

We've just added tickets for our free curator's highlights tour of the exhibition: Grace Notes in American History. Join...
07/20/2022

We've just added tickets for our free curator's highlights tour of the exhibition: Grace Notes in American History. Join us for this one-hour tour!

Register here:

Join us for a curator's tour of Grace Notes in American History: 200 Years of Songs from the Lester Levy Sheet Music Collection.

Address

17 E Mt Vernon
Baltimore, MD
21202

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 5pm
Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 7pm
Sunday 11am - 5pm

Telephone

+16672086715

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