The Amsterdam City Archives ( nl, Stadsarchief Amsterdam) preserves documents pertaining to the history of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

and provides information about the city. With archives covering a shelf-length of about 50 kilometres, the Amsterdam City Archives is the largest municipal archive in the world.

History

In the Middle Ages, Amsterdam’s important documents were stored in a special cabinet that was kept in the so-called ‘Iron Chapel’ (IJzeren Kapel) in the Old Church ( Oude Kerk). In the nineteenth century, the archives moved to the Waag building at the Nieuwmarkt, and in 1914 to the

former town hall of Nieuwer-Amstel The City Hall in Nieuwer-Amstel is a Neo renaissance building built in 1889-1892 overlooking the Amstel. It was the seat of the city of Nieuwer-Amstel's government, but after absorption into the municipality of Amsterdam in 1896, it became a loca ...

. Since the summer of 2007, the Amsterdam City Archives have been located in the monumental building

De Bazel De Bazel is a listed/protected historic building on the west side of the Vijzelstraat in Amsterdam (at number 32), and stretches from the Herengracht to the Keizersgracht. It stands as an example of Brick Expressionism. History The building w ...

, in the city-centre, which derives its name from the famous Dutch architect K.P.C. de Bazel, who designed it.

Preservation

The Amsterdam City Archives belongs to the government of Amsterdam. It preserves the archives of the municipal government and of the national government when related to Amsterdam, besides those of private institutions, families or individuals, and companies connected with the city. The municipalities of Ouder-Amstel and

Amstelveen Amstelveen () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands with a population of 92.353 as of 2022. It is a suburban part of the Amsterdam metropolitan area. The municipality of Amstelveen consists of the historical villages o ...

have also deposited their historical archives at the Amsterdam City Archives. In addition, the City Archives houses a large collection of images and audio-visual material, as well as a library. Among the various documents of international significance kept at the Amsterdam City Archives are the archives of the Heineken brewery and the renowned Concertgebouw, letters written by

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

and

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

, an eighteenth-century trade agreement between the city and the newly founded

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

, the book containing the excommunication of seventeenth-century philosopher Spinoza, and a police report about the theft of Anne Frank’s bike, dated April 13, 1942. The Amsterdam City Archives also monitors the way the various departments within Amsterdam’s administrative structure manage their archives, ensuring that documents that are of significance for the city’s history are maintained.

Publication

Archival material is made available for consultation both on site and through the internet. In recent years, many documents have been digitized. The website of the Amsterdam City Archives features an Image Bank, containing more than 260.000 photos, drawings, and prints related to the city, and an Archives Database, providing scans of archival material on request, including a wealth of sources for genealogical research, accessible through several indexes. These scans now number more than seven million.

Exhibitions and events

The Amsterdam City Archives also shares the available expertise on Amsterdam and its history through publications and events. The Archives regularly presents temporary exhibitions, while noteworthy documents are on permanent display in the so-called: Amsterdam Treasure Room. Wander through the Treasure Room, dating from 1926. Find out about Rembrandt or Johan Cruyff and their times. Marvel at the medieval charter cabinet. And follow the change from a small city in a medieval world to a world city in our times. Historical films about Amsterdam are shown in a small movie theatre. Admission is free.

References

External links

"Amsterdam City Archives"
on official city of Amsterdam portal website in English, www.iamsterdam.com {{Authority control Archives in the Netherlands History museums in the Netherlands Museums in Amsterdam City archives