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About Burns Library archival collections

Our archival collections include those documenting individuals and organizations pertaining to Irish and Irish Americans, British Catholic authors, the practice of Catholicism in the United States, nursing and nursing education, Boston, and Boston College.

About this site

This site allows you to search all descriptions (finding aids) of archival material at Burns Library at one time. We hope this helps you identify more material relevant to your research and find connections between collections that were previously unknown to you. You can also request material either to use at Burns Library or as a digital copy (scan). Please review our reading room policies for general information for researchers and check our hours.

Ask for help

We are happy to assist you! We encourage you to search the library catalog to find more items relevant to your research; see Finding Burns Material for tips and search techniques. If you feel like you still need help from our staff, please email or call (617-552-4861) us. Note that while we can provide reference help and fulfill scan requests, we are not able to provide in-depth research assistance.

Potentially Harmful Language and Content

Burns Library and the BC Libraries are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We are aware that descriptions in our Finding Aids (this site) and Library Catalog have been created over time using standards rooted in systems of harm (e.g. colonialism, racism, sexism, homophobia) and utilizing the dated language of individuals and organizations who made the materials themselves. We are also aware that materials in our collections may be objectionable and offensive; we believe it is important to preserve the past so that we can learn from it. We are actively working to improve the language we use, highlight hidden voices, and contextualize materials; however, there is much work to do.