Welcome to Baker Library!
Use this self-guided tour online or in-person to learn about Baker Library's history, spaces, resources, and services. If you're in the building, you can scan the five QR codes at each stop to jump to more information. We love welcoming visitors to our space, but please be aware that stops 3-5 require an HUID or HBS Executive Education room key and are only accessible to current Harvard University affiliates.
About us: Baker Library is the largest academic business library in the world and one of over 25 libraries at Harvard. We have two reading rooms on two separate floors - the de Gaspé Beubien Reading Room on the first floor and the Stamps Reading Room on the third floor. We have over 50,000 visits to our reading rooms and answer over 8,000 research questions annually.
A little history: HBS was established in 1908 as the first business school in the U.S. The school received a $5 million donation from George F. Baker in 1924, providing the funding for this campus in Allston. From this donation, Baker Library was built in 1927. A library renovation, completed in 2005, preserved much of the original reading room you’ll see on the third floor.
Background image description: front exterior of Baker Library, a brick building with white columns and trim. The two trees framing the front steps are in bloom.
Stop 1
The North Lobby
Head up the front steps (or through our wheelchair accessible entry on the south side of the building) into the north lobby, where you'll find our Special Collections & Archives department and exhibits. On the walls hang portraits of every HBS Dean since the School's founding in 1908.
Scholars from HBS, Harvard, and around the world use Special Collections’ de Gaspé Beaubien Reading Room, located off the North Lobby, to conduct research in the Library’s renowned collections of corporate archives, rare books, School records, and manuscripts dating from the 14th century.
It's not an official stop on the tour, but if you have time, pop down to the basement to check out additional Special Collections & Archives exhibits, including Post-15, a Depression-era stock exchange trading post from the New York Stock Exchange floor, a photographic exhibit that shows the campus being constructed, and an exhibit of cartoons from the Wall Street Journal.
Background image description: Special Collections displays and Dean portraits in the North Lobby.
Stop 2
The South Lobby
Walk through the arch into the south lobby, also known as the Baker Library Bloomberg Exchange. The Exchange is a great place to meet colleagues, study, or take a break. There are Bloomberg terminals, a powerful financial database, available here for MBAs to use. Windows and Macintosh desktops are available for computing needs.
Background image description: Overhead view of the Bloomberg Exchange, where visitors are reading and doing work.
Stop 3
The Stamps Reading Room
From the lobby, head up the stairs or elevators located on either side of the building to the Stamps Reading Room on the third floor. The Stamps Reading Room is a one-stop shop for asking questions, borrowing books, accessing onsite databases, or just studying quietly. Don't forget your HUID or Executive Education room key! You'll need it to tap into the reading room.
Things to check out:
The Service Desk: Stop by just to say hi or ask one of our librarians a question. We're here to help! This is also where library borrowers can check out circulating items from our collection or pick up books requested via HOLLIS, the Harvard Library catalog. All active Harvard staff, students, and faculty, and other eligible researchers can borrow and request books from all Harvard Libraries.
Bloomberg terminals and financial databases: Most of our databases are available remotely, but some, like Bloomberg, are available only in the library. You'll find Bloomberg terminals to the west of the Service Desk, and other in-library use databases on our high-power PCs.
Laptop docking stations: Several carrells throughout the room are equipped with HD monitors, keyboards, and mice to allow for easy use with your Windows laptop. Macintosh desktops also are available for docking a laptop. Just plug in and go!
The Eliot Table: Commissioned in 1853 by former Harvard President Charles Eliot, who was instrumental in establishing the Business School, this table was later inherited by HBS’s first Dean Edwin Gay. Check out the video below of the table being hoisted into the reading room via a crane through the window on the East End in 2016. It's located in the East End of the reading room.
Video description: Video of historic Eliot Table being hoisted into the reading room via a crane.
The Little Black Library: Located along the north wall near recent HBS faculty books and other highlighted collections, you'll find Baker's Little Black Library, a collection of literature on antiracism and the Black experience. Learn more about the Little Black Library, an organization started by an HBS MBA alumna.
HBS Art & Artifacts: Baker Library also manages the HBS art and artifacts collections. Check out books on artists in the collections and works on display in the reading room. Keep an eye out for all the wonderful art throughout campus.
Current periodicals, CORE, and Reference: Many of our print collections are located in the stacks, but in addition to new books, current periodicals (new journal issues), the CORE collection (HBS faculty books and other business classics), and the reference collection (data not covered in databases) are housed in the reading room.
New books, faculty display, and monthly highlights: Stop by these shelves any time to find great reading material. Baker keeps new and notable titles on display, including recent publications by faculty. In the center shelves, you'll find a rotating display case, where we celebrate HBS-recognized heritage months with curated selections.
Recreational reading and Baker Book Swap: For a cozy place to sit and enjoy a book, newspaper, or magazine, check out the east wing. These shelves also feature our take-a-book, leave-a-book area.
Background image description: Stamps Reading Room facing east, with wooden arches, columns, desks, and bookcases.
Stop 4
The Annex
Adjacent to the reading room is the Annex, a collaborative study area. This is a great place to work with a group - there's a large meeting room. Or you can take a phone call or have a Zoom meeting in one of the individual meeting rooms.
The Annex is also where you'll find our facilities like the water fountain, scanners, and restrooms.
Background image description: Group study table and large meeting room in the Annex.
Stop 5
The Stacks
From the elevator in the Annex, head down to the stacks level "S," where you'll find the rest of our collections. If you need help locating anything, just let us know! The stacks also house our microforms and readers, older issues of magazines, and statistical publications.
We often say this is the quietest (and coldest) spot on campus. If you're someone who needs to study in silence and solitude, the stacks are for you. Just be sure to bring a sweater!
There is a gender neutral restroom in the Stacks.
Background image description: Gray collapsible book shelves with multicolored books.
To exit, take the elevator back up to the third floor. We hope to see you again soon!
Find more information and library resources at https://www.library.hbs.edu/