Special Collection Highlights

Self-Guided Walking Tour of Historic Portsmouth

Portsmouth is filled to the brim with history! Settled in 1623, our city has nearly 400 years’ worth of stories that can be told through the artifacts, houses, and sites we’ve chosen to preserve. Take our walking tour through the South End and as you stroll, we’ll point out some of these spots and share our favorite tidbits from Portsmouth’s past along the way! Download our PDF or pick up a copy of the map at the library. Stay tuned for a video!

Cemetery Indexes and plot plans

If you are searching for a particular plot, visit the Special Collections Room to check the name indexes and plot maps before you walk the cemeteries. Indexes are available for North Cemetery, Point of Graves, South Cemetery (which includes 5 smaller cemeteries: Cotton, Elmwood, Harmony Grove, Proprietors, and Sagamore), Temple Israel Cemetery, Union, and miscellaneous family gravesites. Many thanks to the volunteers who made this possible.

Before you walk a Portsmouth Cemetery in search of an individual plot, we recommend you visit or contact the Special Collections Room to check our cemetery indexes for names, plot numbers and maps.

You can also search FIND A GRAVE , or view and download the library's collection of maps and PDFs, either on our cemetery index page, or our digital collections archive.

Art Collections

Much of the library’s art and artifact collection is on view throughout the building, including a grand Portrait of Celia Thaxter by Otto Grundman which is located in the lobby.  Some works require low light and must be kept in storage.  The library is making an effort to digitize these collections to make them accessible.  Some of the highlights of the collection include: a collection of watercolors by Sarah Haven Foster (1827-1900), a collection of drawings by Helen Pearson (1871-1949), several works by Susan Ricker Knox (1875?-1959) and several paintings by Russell Cheney (1881-1945). Please contact the library or visit the Special Collections Room for more information.

Henry Clay Barnabee Collection 

This collection consists of 12 boxes of scrapbooks, photographs, albums, books, souvenir albums, souvenir books, opera music scores, watercolors, etc., that belonged to the Portsmouth-born actor and singer Henry Clay Barnabee (1833-1917).

History Vertical Files

Librarians have maintained a gathering of newspaper and magazine articles, pamphlets, brochures, photographs, postcards, and other ephemera relating to people, places, and things in Portsmouth and the surrounding communities. It is intended to provide patrons with historic and background information on each topic. It is a great place to start! Please note: these files are not all-inclusive for any given topic. It is likely that additional material for each topic is available within other Portsmouth Public Library holdings as well as other collections in the Portsmouth area.  There is a finding aid available in the library. The files are stored in the Special Collection Vault and require a librarian to retrieve materials.  Please ask a librarian for assistance.

Obituary Database

Upon request the library staff can perform a name search to assist in locating local obituaries which may be printed from microfilm held in the Reference Department. 

Thanks to long-time volunteer Cynthia Thomas, the library has a fairly comprehensive index of death notices and obituaries appearing in the local newspapers from 1891-2000.  Staff and many volunteers have created a database, and continue to gather and enter obituaries through current dates.  

World War II Records

This collection of 20 files was compiled by the Portsmouth War Records Committee during the World War II years. It includes photographs, scrapbooks, newspaper clippings, posters, pamphlets, and reports from businesses, clubs, and organizations.