Associates of the Boston Public Library

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Associates of the Boston Public Library is an independent, nonprofit dedicated to conserving the Boston Public Library’s Special Collections of rare books, manuscripts, prints, photographs, and items of literary, historic and cultural significance. The Associates of the Boston Public Library is an independent nonprofit dedicated to preserving the Boston Public Library’s Special Collections of rare books, manuscripts, prints, photographs, musical scores, and other items of literary, historic and cultural importance. The Associates makes grants to ensure continued public access to these irreplaceable treasures by underwriting their conservation, cataloging, digitization, and exhibition. Through these efforts, the Associates aims to help the BPL fulfill its most essential mission of providing top quality, free educational resources to the public, as well as preserving knowledge, culture, and history for the benefit of all.

10/29/2026

Save the Date 🕯️for the 37th Annual Literary Lights Gala!

Premier Tickets & Tables will be available for purchase beginning in November 2026

Stay tuned as we unveil the incandescent roster of Literary Light honorees and their impressive presenters...

Last Thursday evening a small group gathered in the Boston Public Library's Special Collections for a Behind-the-Scenes ...
10/27/2026

Last Thursday evening a small group gathered in the Boston Public Library's Special Collections for a Behind-the-Scenes look at a selection of Leslie Jones collection images, glass negatives and personal scrapbooks and equipment.

Thank you to the Special Collections team & to everyone that joined us for this special evening! An extra special shout out to Aaron Schmidt, Curator of Photography, for sharing your knowledge and understanding of this incredible body of work with us.

10/26/2026

To learn from our past, we must preserve it and make it accessible to all. 📚✨

Through our Associates-Funded Conservation Internship, students like Hanna Rashidi work alongside the Boston Public Library Special Collections Conservation team—stabilizing torn pages, repairing historic bindings, and protecting fragile treasures for generations to come.

Your support makes hands-on preservation like this possible. Make a gift today to invest in the future of our shared history: https://www.associatesbpl.org/donate/

On this day in 1881, the Boston Symphony Orchestra gave its inaugural concert, under Georg Henschel, at the Boston Music...
10/22/2026

On this day in 1881, the Boston Symphony Orchestra gave its inaugural concert, under Georg Henschel, at the Boston Music Hall! 🎵🎻

The original historic Boston Music Hall (built in 1852 on Winter Street) closed as a classical concert venue in 1900 when the Boston Symphony Orchestra moved to the new Symphony Hall. It was gutted and converted into a vaudeville and movie house, reopening in 1906 .... it still operates today as a live music venue! Can you NAME THAT VENUE? 💡

Image courtesy of Boston Pictorial Archive, Arts Department, BPL Special Collections
Published in: Gleason's Pictorial, Vol. III No. 25, December 18, 1852, p. 385.

Boston Symphony Orchestra Boston Public Library

Yesterday, the Associates team were able to join Associates Board member Dr. Lisa Fagin Davis & students from Simmons Sc...
10/21/2026

Yesterday, the Associates team were able to join Associates Board member Dr. Lisa Fagin Davis & students from Simmons School of Library and Information Science on a visit to see some of the incredible medieval manuscripts held in the BPL's Special Collections.

Emphasizing the importance of hands-on discovery & exploration in research and understanding of the past, we had the chance to learn from the expert what artistic, linguistic and contextual clues help to place a work in time & space.

Thank you to Dr. Davis, her students, and the Special Collections team for allowing us to join you!



Boston Public Library Simmons SLIS

10/19/2026

What a night! ✨📚📝

Miss us on October 6th? Relive the magic of the evening of the Alan Andres Writing Fellows Reading & Celebration - watch the full recording today! https://youtu.be/7p0tqCldVio?si=Z2-J3wHqHpL7oqd5

Interested in getting involved with Associates programming? Our Writing Fellowships Committee could be a good fit! Reach out to our team: [email protected].

We are thrilled to celebrate the strong representation of the Associates of the Boston Public Library community at this ...
10/16/2026

We are thrilled to celebrate the strong representation of the Associates of the Boston Public Library community at this weekend’s Boston Book Festival (October 16 & 17)!

Our board members, committee leaders, former Literary Light honorees, and fellowship judges are featured prominently across this weekend’s keynotes and panel discussions.

A special shoutout to Geraldine Brooks (2008 Literary Light), who headlines Opening Night tonight! In anticipation of her presentation, we invite you to rewatch our 2022 Literary Spotlights session with Geraldine Brooks, hosted by Christy Cashman.

📺 Watch the 2022 Literary Spotlight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTr-_yuohSI

View the complete Boston Book Festival schedule: www.bostonbookfest.org

Featuring: Geraldine Brooks, Whitney Scharer, Siân Gaetano, Kate Tuttle, Natalie Lemle, Tess Gerritsen, Ben Mezrich, Tom Perrotta and Lisa Pierpont

Board Member Spotlight🔦The Associates' are excited to shine a spotlight on Lisa Fagin Davis, our Board of Directors Co-V...
10/15/2026

Board Member Spotlight🔦

The Associates' are excited to shine a spotlight on Lisa Fagin Davis, our Board of Directors Co-Vice Chair, Programming, and her recent feature in The Guardian regarding her work on the Voynich Manuscript.

Alongside fellow researcher, Colin Layfield, Davis makes the argument that incorrect binding of Voynich manuscript "radically changes ideas about its drawings and indecipherable text." (The Guardian)

READ THE FULL FEATURE: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2026/oct/06/voynich-manuscript-research-pages-wrongly-bound

Image Credit: Photo 12/Universal Images Group/Getty Images/The Guardian

The Associates of the Boston Public Library is pleased to announce the appointment of author, educator, and community le...
10/13/2026

The Associates of the Boston Public Library is pleased to announce the appointment of author, educator, and community leader Whitney Scharer to our Board of Directors! ✨

Whitney brings a depth of literary achievement, educational experience, and community engagement expertise to the Associates Board.

"Whitney Scharer is passionate about the literary arts and an innovative leader in the Boston writing community. Our board is thrilled to have her creative energy, deep intellectual strengths, and literary acumen advance our work on behalf of the BPL's exceptional Special Collections." - Usha Pasi, Co-Vice Chair, Strategy, Associates Board of Directors

Learn more about Whitney in our blog post > https://www.associatesbpl.org/2026/10/13/associates-welcome-whitney-scharer-to-board-of-directors/

Address

700 Boylston Street
Boston, MA
02116

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