Labor History Archives

Although there are plenty of ways to learn about labor history without engaging in archival research, there are a number of important labor history archives throughout the U.S. The most important are:

Cornell University, Kheel Center
The Kheel Center, affiliated with Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, is one of the most important archives on American labor history, with the papers of such important organizations as the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, as well as numerous teachers’ unions and other important figures in the history of labor. Cornell’s ILR School also hosts many public programs throughout the year, in Ithaca, in New York City, and online.

George Meany Memorial Archives
The Meany Memorial Archives is housed at the University of Maryland; it holds the AFL-CIO records.

Walter Reuther Library
Located in Detroit, Michigan, the Reuther Library has a number of online collections as well as a sizable archive of major American unions.

Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
One of the most important archives for scholarly research on labor and the left; located at NYU’s Bobst Library, Tamiment/Wagner also hosts a series of programs open to the public.