Stadsarchief Amsterdam

About

The Amsterdam City Archives (Dutch: Stadsarchief Amsterdam) preserves documents pertaining to the history of Amsterdam and provides information about the city. With archives covering a shelf-length of about 50 kilometres, the Amsterdam City Archives is the largest municipal archive in the world.

History: In the Middle Ages, Amsterdam’s important documents were stored in a special cabinet that was kept in the so-called ‘Iron Chapel’ (IJzeren Kapel) in the Old Church (Oude Kerk). In the nineteenth century, the archives moved to the Waag building at the Nieuwmarkt, and in 1914 to the former town hall of Nieuwer-Amstel. Since the summer of 2007, the Amsterdam City Archives have been located in the monumental building De Bazel, in the city-centre, which derives its name from the famous Dutch architect Karel de Bazel, who designed it.

Preservation: The Amsterdam City Archives belongs to the government of Amsterdam. It preserves the archives of the municipal government and of the national government when related to Amsterdam, besides those of private institutions, families or individuals, and companies connected with the city. The municipalities of Ouder-Amstel and Amstelveen have...