Humanities Collections and Reference Resources

HCRR advances scholarship, education, and public engagement in the humanities by helping libraries, archives, museums, and historical organizations across the country steward important collections of books and manuscripts, photographs, sound recordings and moving images, archaeological and ethnographic artifacts, art and material culture, and digital objects. The program strengthens efforts to make the content of such materials accessible through digitization and description. Awards also support the creation of reference resources that facilitate the use of cultural materials, from works that provide basic information quickly to tools that synthesize and codify knowledge of a subject for in-depth investigation.    

The HCRR program encourages open access, collaboration, and sustainable strategies for managing digital collections and resources. To the extent that the condition of the materials, intellectual property rights, and privacy and cultural considerations allow, you should make the resources you develop publicly available. NEH encourages collaboration between smaller and larger repositories, as well as between humanities experts, information professionals, and community stakeholders to expand participation in cultural heritage and promote engagement with primary sources. You should prioritize methods that allow for sharing and the interoperability of information and resources to ensure their long-term availability.