Kentucky Library

The Kentucky Building Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY

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About the Kentucky Library

The Kentucky Library collects printed materials about Kentucky. Included are approximately 70,000 volumes pertaining to: Mammoth Cave and other caves; religious denominations (including the Shakers); state, county, and town histories; biographies; travelers' accounts; geological survey reports; state documents; 19th century children's books; genealogical compilations; and a wide variety of other subjects. Rare books and periodicals of subjects other than Kentucky are also a part of the collection. For access to these books and periodicals see TOPCAT 2000.

The Kentucky Library also houses non-book materials: maps, photographs, postcards, engravings, newspapers, broadsides, sheet music, hymnals, scrapbooks, phonograph records, and ephemera. These non-book items are not listed on TOPCAT 2000. Consult the library's card catalog or indexes and ask for assistance.

Please allow time for your research as Kentucky Library & Museum holdings do not circulate. Please refer to the Harrison-Baird Reading Room policies for additional useful information concerning your visit.

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Hours may vary during holidays, semester breaks, and summer semesters.

Fall 2009 Holiday Hours

(270) 745-5083 or send an email to Klmref@wku.edu.

Unless their fragility prohibits, most items in the Kentucky Library may be photocopied. Photocopies cost ten cents. The rate for WKU faculty, staff, and students is five cents. To arrange for publication quality reproductions, consult a member of the staff.

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Part of the Kentucky Building, the Kentucky Library is conveniently located in Bowling Green, Kentucky on the campus of Western Kentucky University. To find it on the map, look here.

Traveling Southbound: From I-65 South, take exit 28 to Bowling Green. Follow 31-W South and Highway 68-80 (Adams St.) to Western Kentucky University. Just past 14th Street, look for the directional sign to the Kentucky Museum and turn left at the traffic island and proceed down Kentucky Street. There are visitor parking lots on the left and right. The Kentucky Building is 5.5 miles from exit 28.

Traveling Northbound: From I-65 North, take exit 20 to the William H. Natcher Parkway (formerly the Green River Parkway). Take exit 4 and turn right onto 31-W (There is a sign for Western Kentucky University). Take 31-W to University Boulevard and turn left. Follow this street to the Kentucky Building. There is visitor parking on the left and right. The Kentucky Building is four miles from exit 4.

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Special Collections Librarian
Specialist in Kentucky History
Library Assistant

To locate phone numbers of individuals use the Online WKU Faculty/Staff Directory.

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phone: 270-745-5083 fax: 270-745-6264
email .

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The Kentucky Building houses the Kentucky Museum, Kentucky Library, Manuscripts and Folklife Archives and University Archives. These areas contain thousands of artifacts, rare books, maps, photographs, genealogical materials, unpublished letters, journals, and family and political papers. This unique partnership of museum and library resources provides researchers, scholars, and visitors with a broad-based overview of Kentucky's history, culture, and people.

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To locate phone numbers of individuals use the Online WKU Faculty/Staff Directory.

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Museum Exhibits
Special Events

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