The Alaska Historical Collections of the Alaska State Library provides patron services and collects research materials on all aspects of Alaska history and development, with a selective focus on surrounding regions and the Arctic outside Alaska. Resources include books, state and federal publications, historic manuscripts and photographs, oral history tapes, maps, newspapers and periodicals, pamphlets and clippings.
All collections are non-circulating.
The Historical Collections maintains a reading room reserved for those using its holdings. An Act of Congress in 1905 declared that all fees received by the Secretary from all sources be set apart and used specifically for the benefit of the Alaska Historical Library and Museum. Under the Organic Act of 1912, the District of Alaska became a territory of the United States with the majority of revenue fees diverted to the general fund. Following this decision, the Alaska Territorial Legislature created the Territorial Historical Library and Museum Commission. The Legislature appropriated money for its operation in an act approved in 1923.