AKC Library and Archives
The AKC maintains one of the largest libraries devoted to dogs in the world, containing approximately 15,000 volumes, and the only national repository dedicated to the sport and enjoyment of the purebred dog. It has been providing internal and external reference on all manners of dog-related inquiries since 1934.
committee chair Edwin Megargee.
The AKC Archives began in 1998 as a service to AKC national breed clubs. Since then, it has grown to include AKC Administrative records and personal collections of prominent men and women in the sport.
The AKC Library & Archives holdings also include a complete run of the AKC Gazette and other bound periodicals, Stud Books, AKC-licensed dog show catalogs (1877-1983), art, literature, juvenile books, stamps, bookplates, scrapbooks, and vertical files of clippings, magazine articles, and photographs. The collection boasts such rare books as Johannes Caius’s De Canibus Britannicis, published in 1570; Cynographia Britannica by Sydenham Edwards, published in 1800; and the personal libraries of renowned fanciers John Cross, the Shearer sisters, Alva Rosenberg, and more.
Collections are open for on-site research by appointment. Researchers may search our library collection and explore our archival database online. For all research inquiries, research appointment requests, general questions, or comments, please use this form.
All dog pedigree requests and related inquiries to dogs registered in the last three decades, should be first directed to the AKC Registration and Customer Service department at info@akc.org or 919-233-9767.
A quarter of the library collection is now available for viewing within the AKC Museum of the Dog.
The library space in the AKC Museum of the Dog includes a bulk of the books on individual breeds as well as children’s literature and other dog-specific topics on art, history, photography, training, sport, military and police work, and more. A display case within the Museum Library features rotating exhibitions curated by the AKC Library & Archives.
Current and upcoming exhibits:
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- Outfoxed: Fox Terriers and Friends, January 24, 2024 – June 2, 2024.
- The Dogs That Serve, The NYPD Transit Bureau K9 Unit as photographed by Margaret Foxmoore, March 13, 2024 – May 5, 2024.
- Apokalupsis: An Uncovering, The Art of Joseph Sulkowski, May 9, 2024 – August 4, 2024.
Past exhibitions:
- The AKC at 50: Thriving in the Thirties
- 9/11 Remembered: Search and Rescue Dogs
Follow @akclibrary on Instagram to see treasures from our collections!
Links
Dog Map of the World, Joseph P. Sims (1933)
