REBECCA CHASE HERRESHOFF LIBRARY
The Rebecca Chase Herreshoff Library is the primary research resource and repository of manuscripts of the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company (1863-1945) and the Herreshoff family--a collection that includes five thousand texts, three thousand images (glass-plate negatives, photographs, etchings, prints), an estimated fifteen thousand archival quality media (rare books, publications, letters, drawings), plus video, film and audiotapes. The Library also includes media from important yachting and America's Cup collections, including those of the Herreshoff family, Briggs S. Cunningham, J. E. Roosevelt, Charles Moody, Edward I. du Moulin, and Stanley Livingston, Jr.
The Library's computerized card catalog currently consists of approximately 5,000 books and periodicals. Cataloging, housing and preserving of this collection is ongoing and has been funded in part by the generous support of the Champlin Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities. We are also extremely grateful to individual donors and supporters.
Visit the Archives
Because of the rarity of our collection, we do not circulate our holdings. The Library and Archives are, however, available for research by appointment. Contact our Librarian & Archivist Norene Rickson.
Archived Publications
The Museum offers an online archive of The Chronicle newsletters, published from 1979 to 2001. The Museum publishes a digital newsletter called The Current, (November 2010 - present).
Visit the Archives
Because of the rarity of our collection, we do not circulate our holdings. The Library and Archives are, however, available for research by appointment. Contact our Librarian & Archivist Norene Rickson.
Archived Publications
The Museum offers an online archive of The Chronicle newsletters, published from 1979 to 2001. The Museum publishes a digital newsletter called The Current, (November 2010 - present).
Research Services
Research services are offered subject to availability of Library or Curatorial staff. Research requests may be submitted through our Research Request form.
There is no charge for basic inquiries - up to one hour of research - for museum members. Click here for membership details. (Please contact us if the cost of a membership represents a significant barrier for you and we will try to accommodate your request.) For specific vessel requests, please provide as much information as possible, including boat name, year built, HMCo. number, vessel type, etc.
Requests involving substantial amounts of research time will be charged at an hourly rate of $75.00 per hour ($60.00 for museum members). Hours will be quoted in advance before the work is undertaken. Payment must be received before research is undertaken. Additional research beyond initial estimate may be requested, in which case another quote will be provided. In addition to the hourly rate, digital scans of archival material may be requested and are offered at a rate of $2.00 per page.
Media Requests for Research or Publication
The Herreshoff Marine Museum maintains an extensive library of maritime-related publications, photographic files of the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, the Herreshoff family, boats manufactured by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company and America's Cup Hall of Fame-related holdings including archival material, films, ephemera and historic photographs. The Herreshoff Marine Museum also maintains an archive of publication-quality digital photographs of artifacts in the HMM collection, including accessioned boats. Digital facsimiles of historic photos and artifacts are available for research and publication upon request pending curatorial staff approval.
Standard digital file orders are provided as jpegs at 300 ppi. Higher resolution and/or alternative file types are available on a case-by-case basis. All files are delivered via a link to a file sharing service and will be available for download for a two week period. Creation of NEW digital files includes a baseline $25 processing fee. This is subject to increase based on the scope of the project to cover staff processing time. Additional pricing questions may be submitted via the Media Request Form.
After you submit your media request, Curatorial staff will provide you with low-resolution watermarked images to preview. You may then select images for delivery, at which point you will be sent an invoice and a one-time user agreement to be signed and returned electronically.
Payment can be made via phone by credit card and must be received before full resolution files are delivered. Please allow 4-6 weeks for processing of media requests; rush requests may incur additional charges (to be quoted with invoice). Proceeds from your media and publication orders directly support the maintenance and operation of the Museum’s library and archives; we appreciate your ongoing support!
The Herreshoff Marine Museum may only provide publication permission for artifacts and archival material in the collection to which HMM retains exclusive copyright and/or that are in the public domain. Users will be asked to sign a one-time user agreement prior to receipt of any media. The user of this material assumes all responsibility for issues of copyright and for securing copyright clearance.
Please note that all plans and construction drawings from the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company are in the holdings of the MIT Museum.
One-time-use licensing & publication fee: Individual, Member: $55 per image
Individual, Non-Member: $65 per image
Commercial Publication:
Local - $55, National - $100, International - $160
