The Library has been acquiring archives since 1898 and the Archives Division holds over 1400 archive collections supporting research across the social sciences. We also hold the Library's rare books| and older pamphlets|.
Popular subjects include (click on a word to take you to a hitlist on the online Archives catalogue):
Accounting| Agriculture| Anthropology| Banks| Business| Economic history| Economics| Education| Elections| International history| Labour relations| Law| Lesbian and gay issues| Local government| Maps| Peace| Philosophy| Politics| Railways| Social policy| Socialism| Sociology| Trade unions| Transport infrastructure|
Last year's most popular collections consulted in the reading room included:
William Beveridge|
Charles Booth (Survey of life and labour of the people in London)|
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament|
Colonial Research|
Leonard and Kate Courtney|
Anthony Crosland|
Hugh Dalton|
Fabian Society|
Hall-Carpenter Archives of lesbian and gay activism|
Independent Labour Party|
League of Nations Union|
Liberal Party|
Edward and Margaret Lloyd|
London School of Economics and Political Science|
Bronislaw Malinowski|
Violet Markham|
John Stuart-Mill|
E D Morel|
Siegfried Nadel|
National Institute of Industrial Psychology|
New Survey of London|
Michael Oakeshott|
Merlyn Merlyn-Rees|
Audrey Richards|
Selection Trust|
Peter Shore|
Graham Wallas|
Sidney and Beatrice Webb|
Juliet Rhys-Williams|
Woodcraft Folk|
For a complete list of our collections see the online Archives catalogue|.