New Haven Free Public Library
🏢 New Haven Free Public Library · New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven Free Public Library
Housed in Cass Gilbert's 1911 Colonial Revival landmark on the New Haven Green and winner of the 2019 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, the Ives Main Library pairs a century of civic history with a modern makerspace, a Yale-partnered Memory Lab, and more than 40 free digital databases for every cardholder.
🕑 Library Hours
| Monday | 10am–8pm |
| Tuesday | 10am–8pm |
| Wednesday | 10am–8pm |
| Thursday | 10am–8pm |
| Friday | 10am–5pm |
| Saturday | 10am–5pm |
| Sunday | Closed |
Hours may vary on holidays; check the library site before visiting.
📍 Location, Contact & Directions
Address: 133 Elm Street, New Haven, CT 06510
Phone: (203) 946-8130
Website: nhfpl.org
Plus Code: 87H9835G+J3 (New Haven, CT)
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👋 Use the Library Online
📖 About New Haven Free Public Library
The Ives Main Library — named for Mary E. Ives, whose 1906 gift of $300,000 made it possible — opened on the New Haven Green in 1911, designed by architect Cass Gilbert in Colonial Revival style with red brick and white marble. Founded in 1887 on Chapel Street, the library expanded in a $14.5 million renovation by Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates that brought the total footprint to 103,000 square feet when it reopened in 1990. Inside, two lunette murals by Bancel LaFarge depict scenes from New Haven history alongside Rip Van Winkle murals completed in 1934 under the federal Public Works Administration arts program. The library received the 2019 National Medal for Museum and Library Service — the highest honor bestowed by the Institute of Museum and Library Services — for its deep community engagement, including a collaboration with Yale's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library on the New Haven Memory Lab and the Ives Squared innovation hub.
⭐ What makes this library special
- Cass Gilbert-designed 1911 Colonial Revival building on the New Haven Green, 103,000 sq ft after the 1990 renovation — one of Connecticut's grandest public library structures
- 2019 National Medal for Museum and Library Service recipient — the nation's highest library honor from the Institute of Museum and Library Services
- Ives Squared innovation hub (opened summer 2018): Tinker Lab makerspace, co-working Exchange, Business Librarian office hours, and Library of Things
- New Haven Memory Lab — free DIY digitization of photos, slides, albums, and documents, co-created with Yale's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
- FamilySearch Affiliate Library with on-site genealogy research access, plus cultural passes to the Yale Peabody Museum, Long Wharf Theatre, Wadsworth Atheneum, and more
📱 Digital Resources — Free with Your Library Card
NHFPL cardholders access 40+ digital platforms free — stream, research, and learn from anywhere:
📚 Services
- Passport acceptance facility (call for appointments)
- Meeting room reservations for community and nonprofit groups
- Ives Squared: Tinker Lab makerspace with creative and fabrication tools
- Library of Things: borrow tools, kitchen equipment, games, camping gear, health items, and learning kits
- Business Librarian office hours for entrepreneurs and nonprofits
- New Haven Memory Lab: self-service digitization of photos, slides, scrapbooks, and documents (by appointment; equipment borrowable for 7 days)
- Museum and cultural passes: Yale Peabody Museum, CT Science Center, Wadsworth Atheneum, Beardsley Zoo, Long Wharf Theatre, Yale Repertory Theatre
- Wi-Fi printing and public computers
- Fax services
- Interlibrary loan
- borrowIT CT reciprocal borrowing at 191 Connecticut public libraries
- JobNow live career coaching (Mon–Sun 3–11 PM EST)
- Foundation Directory Online (on-site and remote) for nonprofit grant research
- FamilySearch Affiliate Library for genealogy research (certified on-site access)
🎸 Programs
- Ives Squared events: workshops on entrepreneurship, nonprofit development, and civic innovation
- Story time and children's programming across branches
- Teen programming and learning kits
- Adult literacy and digital skills (Northstar Digital Literacy, LearningExpress)
- New Haven Memory Lab community digitization workshops and individual appointments
- Maker workshops in the Tinker Lab
- Blue Star Museums free admission for active military families (Armed Forces Day through Labor Day)
📍 Nearby Libraries in the New Haven Area
Distances are approximate straight-line miles from this library.
All libraries in New Haven · Browse all Connecticut libraries →
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Who was 'Ives' and why is the main library named after them?
The building honors Mary E. Ives, widow of New Haven businessman Hoadley B. Ives, who donated $300,000 in 1906 — plus an additional bequest — to construct a permanent home for the library. The city purchased the Elm and Temple Street site, and architect Cass Gilbert designed the Colonial Revival building that opened on May 27, 1911. In today's terms, the Ives family's total contribution equals roughly $11 million.
What is the New Haven Memory Lab, and how is Yale involved?
The New Haven Memory Lab is a free, self-service digitization station co-created with Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library as part of the Beinecke's 'New Haven Community Archives Support' initiative. Cardholders can make appointments to scan photo prints, negatives, slides, albums, and scrapbooks. Equipment can also be borrowed for up to 7 days (18+, valid CT library card); call (203) 946-8130 ext. 140 to reserve.
What murals can I see inside the Ives Main Library?
The main hall features two lunettes by Bancel LaFarge depicting scenes from New Haven's history, alongside Rip Van Winkle murals completed in July 1934 by artists including Salvatore DiNaio and Frank J. Rutkowski — part of the federal Public Works Administration arts program of the New Deal era. The building also has stained glass by David Wilson. All are original to the library's 1911 artistic program and survived the 1987–1990 renovation intact.
What is the Ives Squared hub and who can use its makerspace?
Ives Squared opened in summer 2018 as an innovation and community hub within the main library. It houses the Tinker Lab makerspace (open to all cardholders for creative and fabrication projects), a co-working Exchange, Business Librarian office hours for entrepreneurs and nonprofits, and the Library of Things lending collection (tools, kitchen equipment, games, camping gear, and more). It anchors the Elm City Innovation Collaborative (ECIC), a citywide economic development partnership.
🛂 This library offers U.S. passport services. See how library passport acceptance works — requirements, fees and appointments — and find other passport acceptance libraries by state.
🎨 This library lends museum passes. See how library museum passes work and find other libraries that lend passes museum passes by state.
📜 This library has genealogy & local-history resources. See how library family-history research works and find other libraries with genealogy collections genealogy libraries by state.
🧰 This library lends a “Library of Things.” See what you can borrow besides books and find other libraries with a Library of Things Library of Things by state.
🔨 This library has a makerspace / 3D printing. See how library makerspaces and 3D printing work and find other libraries with a makerspace makerspaces by state.
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