32 kilometres of Amsterdam archives

You can use the Archives Database to search for and consult the archives.

The vast majority of documents preserved by Amsterdam City Archives are listed in the Inventories. These brief descriptions can be searched in their entirety.

In the case of many inventories, the content can also be examined online, in the form of scans.

If you are not yet able to see the content of a particular inventory, you can ask us to scan the document for you. In this way, together we can open up all 32 kilometres of Amsterdam’s archives.

Beside the inventories, you will find Indexes, which provide access to certain sections of the archives that have already been fully scanned. The information contained here is primarily genealogical.
The English version of the Archives Database contains an English translation of the explanatory description. It does not contain a translation of the inventories or of the actual archival documents.

Start your search
•In the Inventories
•In the Indexes

Best Archives on the Web Awards 2009

We are proud to announce that the Archiefbank of the Amsterdam Archives only recently translated into English, has been selected as the best Archive website of 2009 by ArchivesNext.com.
The nomination had to be written down in 40 words:
Amsterdam Archives Database: Scanning on demand
One of the members of the jury wrote:
“This is a stunner. Great design in terms of look and functionality. Incredible hierarchical presentation of archives, easy to use, and an ingenious idea: Making the archives scan on demand and finding a source of funding to make that happen–the source being the users. Everything, they claim, can be found online–you just have to ask for some of it to be scanned. This one suggests a new paradigm for archives and archivists, and they do it well.”

After first winning a national award for best IT-project 2008, The Computable Award, the Archives Database is now international acknowledged by winning The Best Archives on the Web Award 2009. In the same category as the Amsterdam City Archives were also awarded: “The National Archives of Australia and “The library of Michigan and the State Archives of Michigan”.

ArchivesNext.com

Archives Database wins Computable Award

The Archives Database was crowned in 2008 with a Computable Award in the category ‘IT project of the year’. Five organizations were nominated in this category, the others being KLM, NS (Dutch Rail), beer brewers Inbev and the giant chemical corporation DSM. The prize was awarded on the basis of votes cast by visitors to the Computable website. Amsterdam City Archives and Toutatis are proud and delighted to have been chosen from this group of large companies.

A very warm word of thanks to all those who voted for us!

Computable Award

Questions?

The system is explained in detail in How does the Archives Database work?.

If you have any further questions about functionality or payments, or about looking at the scans you have purchased, please send an e-mail to informatie@stadsarchief.amsterdam.nl

Demonstration

To give you a good idea of what the Archives Database has to offer, we have made a number of complete inventory numbers accessible to the public, free of charge.

Archive 920, inv. no. 139

A series of photographs of Prinsengracht Hospital, from the archives of the Nursing Association (Vereniging voor ziekenverpleging).

Archives of the Nursing Association, Prinsengracht Hospital

Archive 389, inv. no. 3

Moving letters written by Armand Haagman to his girl-friend, the revue artiste Louisette, from Westerbork transit camp.

Letters from Armand Haageman to Louisette

Archive 5225, inv. no. 5543

From the police archives: documents about Dirk Rietveld, nicknamed ‘Dirk the Diver’, who saved 24 Jordaan locals from drowning.

Dirk Rietveld, nicknamed ‘Dirk the Diver’

System requirements

This search system is compatible with all browsers in common use. However, we would recommend Firefox. This browser, which can be downloaded free of charge, is considerably faster and more stable when consulting the Archives Database, in comparison to Microsoft Internet Explorer (version 6 or higher), Opera (version 8 or higher), and the most recent version of Netscape.

At present, the inventories cannot yet be viewed (well) with Apple’s Safari. So Apple users too are advised to install Firefox.

The Archives Database has been made possibly by the sponsorship of Mondriaanstichting and the VSB Fonds.

Last modified on March 12 2012