Elliott's drawing interpreting L'Enfant's plan of the city of Washington. Early campaign buttons and badges. View of front cover of 1822 City Directory. Over 14,000 volumes chronicle all aspects of Washington's economic, political, social and physical development. The HSW Research Library holds a large collection of newspaper clippings arranged by subject, including information on Washington architecture, associations, businesses, buildings, neighborhoods, schools, streets, transportation, and local government.
Biographical files are also available.
The Society holds a complete set of John Clagett Proctor's articles on local history that appeared in the Sunday Star from 1928 to 1952. A comprehensive card index is available. Microform holdings include D.C. city directories, some D.C. and federal census records, early marriage and death notices from the National Intelligencer, tax assessment records, and D.C. legislative and legal documents. The Society holds over 500 individual manuscript collections, ranging in size from a single folder to many containers, and spanning the entire history of the District of Columbia. Collections include early land records and deeds, personal and family papers, and records of businesses, institutions, and associations.