Welcome to the Edinburgh Room

The Edinburgh Room in the Central Library on George IV Bridge holds the most comprehensive collection of published material on Edinburgh past and present. Its collection includes over 100,000 books, maps, prints, photographs, slides, old parish registers, census returns and newspaper cuttings relating to the history, topography and social life of the City of Edinburgh.

Staff will gladly show you the various catalogues and indexes which are the keys to finding information in the Edinburgh Room. A large proportion of our material has to be fetched by library staff, so it may take a few minutes. If you wish to consult our rare items you will be asked for identification and you may need to make an appointment.

Please note that the Edinburgh Room is a reference department. Everyone is welcome to consult items in our Reading Room. If you wish to borrow books on Edinburgh subjects, please visit the Scottish Library which has an Edinburgh lending section.

Find out more about the Edinburgh Room and the services we provide here:

History of the Department

Enquiry Service

Computers in the Edinburgh Room

Visits and Talks

Disabled Access

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