Hamilton City Libraries

Heritage

The aim of our Heritage Collection, located on Level 3 of the Garden Place library, is to preserve Hamilton's rich cultural and historical legacy. As well as books and magazines, the Heritage Collection includes the Waikato Times from 1872, unpublished letters and diaries of early Waikato settlers and memorabilia such as movie programmes from the 1930's. There is also a large and growing collection of oral histories ranging from architecture to the experiences of new migrants and the development of Hamilton Gardens.

If you are interested in what Hamilton used to look like, there are aerial photographs of Hamilton from the 1940's onwards and a collection of maps dating from 1864. Our collection of historical photographs features images from Hamilton and the greater Waikato. Examples include images of the Union Bridge in the 1880's, and the destruction left by the Frankton Tornado of 1948. See our Hamilton heritage kete for examples of photographs and ephemera in our collection. 

The Heritage Collection also includes a large collection of books on NZ history, art and culture as well as government information such as statutes and reports. Other resources include a comprehensive range of vehicle repair manuals and resources for family history research. 

• A brief history of Hamilton

• The 2013 Historic Hamilton calendar and greeting cards of images from our collection of historic photographs are available for sale now at your local library.  More