Do Your Own Research

The Tempe Historical Museum has a large variety of resources, both online and at the museum facility, that can assist you in conducting your own research on Tempe history.

Online Resources

Archives
Photographs
Biographies
Historic Properties
Family History Albums
Oral Histories
Online Collections
Other Online Resources

The Research Library

The Research Library has a specialized collection of books and journals relating to museum administration, artifacts and antiques, and Arizona history. However, the largest part of the library holdings is composed of reference files on families, individuals, and historic buildings, microfilm copies of Tempe newspapers going back to the 1880s, and taped oral history interviews.

Anyone who would like to look at materials in the Research Library should make an appointment by calling the museum at (480) 350-5100. However, no materials may be checked out or taken out of the Museum.

The following are examples of some of the types of materials you can find there.

Tempe History Files
Biographical Files and Database
Oral Histories
Petersen House Files
Tempe Business Survey
Books and Published Materials
Documents and Publications on Microfilm
Double Butte Cemetery Records on Microfilm

The Archive

The Tempe Historical Museum Archive is a permanent repository that houses the documentary heritage of Tempe. It contains over 20,000 one-of-a-kind photographs and archival objects dating from Tempe's early origins to its present development as a community. Because of the fragile nature of these materials, access to the collections is by appointment with Richard Bauer, the Curator of Photographs and Archives, at (480) 350-5130 or richard_bauer@tempe.gov.

Descriptions of some of the museum's primary archival and mixed archival/photograph collections can be found in the Index of Archival Collections