Explore/Library & Archives
Library & Archives
From the personal collections of Charles Reed Bishop and Ke Ali‘i Bernice Pauahi Bishop to a world center for Hawaiian and Pacific Island materials.
1M+
images — the largest photograph collection of Hawai‘i and the Pacific in the world
1834–1948
the largest existing collection of Hawaiian-language newspapers
~1847
the oldest surviving photograph taken in Hawai‘i — a daguerreotype of Bernice Pauahi Bishop
The collections
When Bishop Museum opened to the public in June 1891, its library consisted of a few shelves of books in what is today the Picture Gallery. Today the Library contains publications of and about Hawai‘i and the Pacific — from the earliest western descriptions of the Pacific to the first texts printed in Hawaiian and Pacific languages — including the most complete collection of Bishop Museum Press titles, among them ‘Ōlelo No‘eau: Hawaiian Proverbs & Poetical Sayings, compiled by Mary Kawena Pukui.
The Archives steward manuscripts, photographs, artwork, oral histories, sound recordings, and maps, including primary source material from C. M. Cooke, J. Linsley Gressitt, Te Rangihiroa (Sir Peter Buck), G. C. Munro, and Yosihiko H. Sinoto. Mrs. Pukui’s prolific legacy of compositions, cultural stories, histories, recordings, and ethnographic notes is housed here.
From the Hawaiian Hall Treasure Case: the scholar whose work anchors the Library and Archives.Open on YouTube
Research
3 publications
Papers, reports and books by Library & Archives staff, with the PDF where there is one — readable in place and open to questions.
All Library & Archives publications ›2025
A revised checklist of Gyrinidae (Insecta: Coleoptera) on New Guinea and proximal islands, with nomenclatural notes and addenda.Polhemus, D.A. · Bishop Museum Occasional Papers
2025
Nomenclatural reassessment of Ulidia Meigen (Insecta: Diptera: Ulidiidae).Evenhuis, N.L., V.A. Korneyev, and E.P. Kameneva · Bishop Museum Occasional Papers
2024
A new replacement name for a primary junior homonym (Diptera: Asilidae).Pont, A.C., and N.L. Evenhuis · Bishop Museum Occasional Papers
From the Archives
Research
Open to everyone
In contrast to the early years, when the Library served Museum staff almost exclusively, the public now comprises the vast majority of researchers — lifelong learners, hula practitioners, genealogists, musicians, visual artists, students, anthropologists, and academic researchers. The reading room is open to the public Tuesdays 1–4 pm and Saturdays 9 am–noon, with collections accessible by appointment.
Online resources
Deeper tools kept by the department itself.
data.bishopmuseum.org
Hawaiian Ethnological Notes (HEN)
Largely Hawaiian-language material translated by Mary Kawena Pukui, including Hawaiian-language newspaper articles
data.bishopmuseum.org
Anthropology Manuscripts
Records of manuscripts of the Anthropology Department
data.bishopmuseum.org
Anthropology Projects
Records of projects of the Anthropology Department
hpji.lib.hawaii.edu
Hawai‘i Pacific Journal Index
Index of Hawai‘i and Pacific journals
hawaiisheetmusic.lib.hawaii.edu
Hawai‘i Sheet Music Index
Index of Hawaiian sheet music
Plan a visit
Collections are accessible by appointment, requested via the online form at bishopmuseum.org (Library & Archives page). The Library and Archives catalogs are temporarily unavailable during a database system transition — email for assistance with your search.
archives@bishopmuseum.orgBe a part of our story
Celebrate the extraordinary history, culture, and environment of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific with a gift to Bishop Museum. As a partner in the Museum’s work, you help sustain the collections, the research and the knowledge behind every record on this site.
