Vertebrate Zoology

Ornithology

The William Robertson Coe Ornithology Library

The Yale Peabody Museum’s William Robertson Coe Ornithology Library is an up-to-date collection of books, journals, documents, artwork, and digital media devoted to birds of the world. It is affiliated wth the ornithology section of the Division of Vertebrate Zoology.

The library was created in the early 1890s, but it wasn’t until the late 1940s that S. Dillon Ripley began its transformation into one of the most important ornithology libraries in the United States. This was assured in 1952 with the gift of William Robertson Coe’s books and related documents. From 1959 to 1990 the holdings were greatly enhanced by Eleanor Stickney. With the Coe Collection at its heart, the library has been an independent entity since 1960.

The collection contains over 4,000 books and nearly 300 journals. Among its holdings are 5 original copper plates for John J. Audubon’s double elephant folio Birds of America; all but one of Francis Lee Jaques’ original paintings of Murphy’s Oceanic Birds of South America; and 6 paintings by the Canadian artist Allan Brooks.

Selected items from the Coe Collection have been placed in the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.

For More Information

The William Robertson Coe Ornithology Library holdings are searchable online through Orbis, the Yale University Library Online Catalog.

The library is also open to the public:

• Tuesdays, 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm
• Fridays, 9:00 am to 7:00 pm

or by prior arrangement. Contact:

Jorge de León
Ornithology Librarian
203.436.4892
ornithology.library@yale.edu

The library is located on the first floor of the Class of 1954 Environmental Science Center, at 21 Sachem Street in New Haven, adjacent to the Peabody Museum of Natural History. Parking for visitors is available behind the Museum on Whitney Avenue at Humphrey Street.

Mailing Address

William Robertson Coe Ornithology Library
Peabody Museum of Natural History
Yale University
P.O. Box 208118
New Haven, CT 06520-8118 USA

Shipping Address

William Robertson Coe Ornithology Library
Peabody Museum of Natural History
Yale University
170–210 Whitney Avenue
New Haven, CT 06511 USA

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