Stadtarchiv Münster

  • The City Archive is the central point of contact for anyone with questions about Münster's city history.
  • We preserve around five kilometres of written documents that have been created by the city council or the city administration since the Middle Ages and make them accessible in the original in our reading room or in digital form via the internet. More than 250,000 records, charters, photographs, maps and newspapers bring the former townscape and local historical events to life.
  • We also archive private collections, company and club archives, that are important for the city's history.
  • The City Archive is an educational partner for Münster's schools and communicates topics of city history through lecture series and publications.

    Our motto: Discover Münster's city history!

Stadtarchiv Münster

Opening Times & Contact

Your Contact

An den Speichern 8
48157 Münster
Germany

Phone number
+49 251-4924701
Fax
+49 251-4927727
E-Mail
archiv@stadt-muenster.de
Homepage of the archive
Opening hours
Monday : closed
Tuesday : 10.00am - 5.00pm
Wednesday : 10.00am - 5.00pm
Thursday : 10.00am - 6.00pm
Friday : closed

Pre-orders under +49 251-4924711 or by e-mail (archiv@stadt-muenster.de).

Please note:
The bus stop "Speicherstadt" is served by lines 6, 19 and R51.
For current bus connections, the best place to look is https://netzplan-muenster.de/.
Our holdings

You will find the following documents and files in the city archive:

  •         of the city of Münster from 1184 until today
  •         of the former district of Münster and the former offices of St. Mauritz, Roxel and Wolbeck


Furthermore:

  •         Documents from associations, parties, companies and private estates
  •         Photos, posters, postcards, plans, maps, newspapers
  •         Documentation material such as newspaper clippings on topics and people
  •         Library with literature on town and regional history

Pre-orders are possible by email: archiv@stadt-muenster.de.

Please indicate the inventory and the reference number (l. Num.).


The holdings of the archive refer to diverse groups of documents that have been combined into a unit according to logically comprehensible aspects such as their origin, their context of origin and their factual content according to formal characteristics. These include, for example, the files of city and district administrations, but also collections of photographs and newspaper clippings. All documents in our archive are assigned to collections that structure the archive. The holdings of the archive are available online in this portal and can be researched, but these finding aids are only available in German.

For an inventory overview click here (German only).

 

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About our archive

The city archive is a modern information service provider for all citizens and for the city administration. Everyone has the right to use archive material on the basis of the Archive Act of North Rhine-Westphalia and the statutes of the city archive. Promoting the use of the archive holdings is especially close to our hearts. That is why historical education and archival pedagogy are among our central tasks. The team of the city archive is available for your questions and use requests.

Library

In addition to official and non-official sources, the Münster City Archive also has a library with approximately 24,000 volumes. The oldest book is from 1514.
One focus of the library is on publications on city and regional history. We also collect 'gray literature' (ephemeral publications) with commemorative publications from associations, businesses, etc. In addition, there is a fairly large stock of exam papers and student papers.
The archive library is a reference library; therefore borrowing is not possible. The publications are available for use in the reading room.

Consulting archival material

You are welcome to find out in advance what we offer in the reading room: The use of the holdings of the City Archives is free of charge, but an application must be submitted. Fees are only charged for special services. A photocopier for reproducing printed works and microfilm readers (with printing facilities) can be used in the reading room. Use of personal digital or cell phone cameras is permitted for public domain archival materials.

Lectures and guided tours in the City Archive

Monthly there are lecture events the so called "Themenabende": Here, history comes alive where the original sources are kept. The special thing about these evenings: The lectures are often illustrated with files, charters, council minutes, photos and posters that the researchers have used for their work.

Guided tours allow anyone interested to take a look behind the scenes: Take a look at the reading room and library and visit our stacks, where the archive material is stored safely and in an appropriate manner!