The History Bank maintains a variety of archives distinct from various collections intended for resale. They include documents, records, paper memorabilia, photographs and ephemera on numerous subjects. We have built and used these archives primarily during research phases of book projects and as ongoing references for our continuing work in many areas of American history.

While we do not maintain a library per se for clients, we do provide assistance to colleagues/researchers as feasible with access to our archives for both informational and commercial use. We have collaborated with many researchers otherwise stymied in their work and have provided resources for a number of commercial enterprises, including independent and major Hollywood film producers looking for historical props from the World's Columbian Exposition and the Seattle World's Fair; publishers needing a photo or a chapter on the Holocaust or baseball history; and museums in the United States and abroad in search of Seattle, Alaska, Klondike and Chicago history.

A few of our larger in-house archives include:

THE KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH and subsequent years (1897–1910): We wrote and produced four books illustrated with proprietary images printed from the original glass-plate negatives of Kinsey & Kinsey photos taken during and after the Klondike Gold Rush. The 300 11x14-inch glass-plate negatives remain one of the finest resources documenting the Gold Rush.

THE CIVIL WAR (1861–1865): This extensive archive includes the photos, documents, references and other material compiled in writing in our seven-book series on the war. The 700-plus photos used in the books are supplemented by hundreds of other images, diaries, letters and documents.

THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION (1893): Our several-thousand-piece archive includes vintage books, periodicals, brochures, photos and ephemera. Images range from actual printed photos to prints, lantern slides, stereo cards, lithographs and other material. We also maintain a collection and constantly changing inventory of tickets, passes, invitations, cards, postal cards, broadsides and more.

THE SEATTLE WORLD'S FAIR (1962): We have built a vast collection in the four decades since the fair was held. We will be involved in numerous activities when Seattle celebrates its 50th anniversary, as we were for the fair's 30th and 40th anniversaries, working with the Seattle Center Foundation, Space Needle and Coliseum (Key Arena).

BASEBALL (19th century through the 1960s): Norm Bolotin, History Bank partner, is a member of SABR (Society for American Baseball Research) and is credentialed as media at the Baseball Hall of Fame. He has served on the editorial board of the baseball literary magazine NINE and directed marketing and editorial for Sports Trade, an internet website. Our files include a diverse group of photos, statistical data and ephemera, with a special emphasis on the Pacific Coast League, focal point of our forthcoming book, A Season on the Coast, the story of both the 1961 AAA Seattle Rainiers and the changing face of minor league baseball.

If you are a publisher, filmmaker, advertising agent or museum, we are happy to help you with information on historical items in our archives. Just email us at norm@thehistorybank.com.