The AKC maintains one of the largest libraries devoted to dogs in the world, containing approximately 15,000 volumes, and the only national repository dedicated to the sport and enjoyment of the purebred dog. It has been providing internal and external reference on all manners of dog-related inquiries since 1934.

The AKC Archives began in 1998 as a service to AKC national breed clubs. Since then, it has grown to include AKC Administrative records, and personal collections of prominent men and women in the sport.

The AKC Library & Archives holdings also include a complete run of the AKC Gazette and other bound periodicals, Stud Books, AKC-licensed dog show catalogs (1877-1983), art, literature, juvenile books, stamps, bookplates, scrapbooks, and vertical files of clippings, magazine articles, and photographs. The collection boasts such rare books as Johannes Caius’s De Canibus Britannicis, published in 1570; Cynographia Britannica by Sydenham Edwards, published in 1800; and the personal libraries of renowned fanciers John Cross, the Shearer sisters, Alva Rosenberg, and more.

Collections are now open for on-site research by appointment. Researchers may search our book holdings and explore our archival database online. Contact the Archivist with appointment requests, research inquiries* and any other questions.

A quarter of the library collection is now available for viewing within the AKC Museum of the Dog, which remains open. A display case within this space features rotating exhibitions curated by the AKC Library & Archives. To compliment the main gallery exhibition “9/11 Remembered: Search and Rescue Dogs,” we’ve selected a few of our favorite stories of heroic dogs and handlers discovered in the Library & Archives collections: from police dogs trained to rescue turn-of-the-century Parisian tourists fallen into the Seine, to an international celebrity dog trainer and advocate for the value of military dogs whose methods were decades ahead of their time, to regular American citizens shaken by the bombing of Pearl Harbor and moved to develop their own canine corps should disaster strike. Please visit us to learn more.

Past exhibitions include “The AKC at 50: Thriving in the Thirties“

For all research inquiries*, research appointment requests, general questions or comments, please use this form.

*All dog pedigree requests and related inquiries to dogs registered in the last three decades, should be first directed to the AKC Registration and Customer Service department at info@akc.org or 919-233-9767. 

Follow @akclibrary on Instagram to see treasures from our collections!

Links

• Library Catalog
• Guide to Archival Collections
• Archives Procedures
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Digital Library & Archives