The Morgan Library and Museum, a hidden gem in New York City
We are lucky to live just outside New York City, which is home to many famous museums. The Morgan Library, located in the heart of midtown Manhattan, might be a bit less known, but we think it is well worth a visit; it’s somewhat unique and a pretty easy visit with its central Manhattan location and interesting collection.
What we like about the Morgan Library is that it is relatively small and painless to visit. If you are burned out on the bigger museum experiences, like the Metropolitan Museum of Art (here’s our blogpost on visiting the Met), the Morgan can be a nice reprieve.
What is unique about the Morgan Library and Museum?
The Morgan Library and Museum began as the personal library of prominent American financier J. Pierpont Morgan. Over his lifetime, Morgan amassed a vast personal collection of rare books, manuscripts, drawings and prints. This collection was his personal passion, and he needed a place to organize it.
So he had this very grand library built between 1902 and 1906, right next to his home on Madison Avenue, which is now part of the Museum, though mostly used for offices and a gift shop. It’s very interesting to think that a mansion and personal library sat in the heart of Manhattan like that.
Some years after Morgan’s death, his son J.P. Morgan Jr, realized the cultural value of his father’s collection and opened it to the public. A rare and enduring gift to the people, the collection has been added onto over the years since, and the holdings continue to grow still.
The collection itself is beyond impressive, though you’ll have to do a bit of reading to really appreciate it. Three of the 49 surviving original copies of the Gutenberg Bible - the earliest mass-printed book in Europe - are here, and you can see one up close on display in the library.
Gutenberg Bible - the earliest mass-printed book in Europe.
But what is also unique about the Morgan is the fact that it was once a residence, and stepping into J. Pierpont Morgan’s study and original rooms, is like stepping back in time. You can see his solid, dark wood desk, and imagine him working behind it, as well as other richly styled chairs & furnishings, heavy draperies and stained glass decorations in the windows. (Why did they like rooms so dark in those days?? 🤔)
Within his study is the West Room Vault, where he kept some of his most valuable books and acquisitions. The vault is lined with steel and resembles a bank vault. It really looks like something out of an old movie! Visitors can’t go inside the vault, but you can take a peek inside.
Although Morgan’s collection spans the world in its scope, visiting the museum feels very much an American experience. I don’t mean a sort of cartoonish Americana kind of thing, but real history. Due to its setting, it seems to house the ghosts of a certain period in the timeline of the US - as the Gilded Age faded into the Progressive Era. (Did I mention it’s like an old movie?)
I think it is a little less touristy than some of the other museums in NYC - it felt like a lot of locals there to me, though I wouldn’t expect that to necessarily mean it doesn’t get busy. But it is very authentic, old New York, and J.P Morgan was definitely a prominent New Yorker.
Morgan’s Library Room
The ornate Italian inspired ceiling in the library room.
The highlight of the Museum has to be the Library room itself. Morgan had this sumptuous Italian Renaissance-inspired room built to house his ever-growing collection of rare books and manuscripts.
All I can say is - wow!!
The triple tiered walnut bookcases that line the walls are something out of a childhood dream to me. The architecture itself, with curved corners on the platforms above and glass doors along the shelves of books, again - wow! And a very nice docent mentioned that the stacks are accessed by secret back staircases. What???!!! A childhood dream indeed!
(This might be a good place to mention that the docents at the Morgan were all very helpful, enthusiastic, and well-informed. A pleasure to talk to!)
A section of the French language books in Morgan’s collection.
The library stacks are filled with European literature spanning the 16th to the 20th centuries, with whole sections dedicated to specific languages.
The real Italian influence can be witnessed by gazing up at the elaborately painted and decorated ceiling. It is mesmerizing and very reminiscent of the ceilings you might see in Renaissance period churches in Europe.
Again - it was rather dark in there! But don’t be tempted to use a flash to take photos. Due to the delicate nature of many of the materials, flash photography is not allowed.
One should note that the Morgan collection contains much more than books. There are plenty of precious objets d’art, sculpture, drawings, prints, photographs and significant artifacts on display in the rooms adjoining the library. Including lots of sparkly things!
Who was Belle da Costa Greene?
A photo of Belle da Costa Greene, the first director and librarian of the collection.
It’s worth saying a little about Belle da Costa Greene, who was the Morgan Library’s first director and librarian. Greene’s legacy made an impression on my friends and me when we visited the library.
Greene was responsible for a great amount of the extraordinary objects acquired by the Library through her forty-three years in the role of librarian, scholar and cultural director.
A lively, intelligent, and bibliophilic woman, she broke both gender and racial barriers of the time. A woman in her important and trusted role during the early-to-mid 1900s was unusual - not to mention the fact that she was a black woman who, passing for white, achieved an incredible amount of status in the art world.
Greene was one of the most prominent librarians in American history, transforming an exclusive private collection into a major public resource, and doing it with a dazzling and witty style all her own. She is famously quoted for saying, “Just because I am a librarian doesn’t mean I have to dress like one.”
At the time when we visited the museum, there was a special exhibit about Belle, which, unfortunately, was at the end of its run, so we didn’t get into it. But you don’t even have to have a special exhibit to get a sense of her influence on the Library & Museum. Much of her work is referenced in the displays, and her lively letters are particularly fascinating.
You can read more about Belle de Costa Greene here.
The modern main entrance with people seated at the cafe.
Planning your visit to the Morgan Library & Museum
How to get to the Morgan Museum
The Morgan Library & Museum is located at 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street.
The nearest subways are on 33rd Street or Grand Central Station.
By Subway:
No. 6 to 33d Street;
No. 4, 5, 6 or 7 to Grand Central
B, D, F, Q to 42d Street
PATH to 33rd Street
For tips on navigating the NYC subway, read our post How to ride the NYC subway, tips for visitors
By Bus:
M2, M3, M4, Q32 to 36th Street
There is a Citi Bike stand at 37th Street and 5th Avenue.
Public Parking lots are available nearby.
The museum is wheelchair accessible and wheelchairs are available for use.
Hours and Costs for the Morgan Museum
The Morgan Library and Museum is closed on Mondays
Tues- Thurs - 10:30am to 5pm
Friday - 10:30am to 7pm
Sat- Sun - 10:30am to 5pm
Ticket cost:
$25 Adults
$17 Seniors (65 and over)
$13 Students (with current ID)
Free to children 12 and under (must be accompanied by an adult)
Advanced timed tickets are suggested but not required. We didn’t need a reservation when visiting in early May, but you may want to reserve tickets during a busier time of year. Even if you buy your ticket in person and not online, they will give you a specific time and you may have to wait a bit.
It’s a pretty expensive ticket, to be honest, but if you are looking to limit costs you can enter free on Fridays between 5 and 7pm, as part of NYC’s Free Fridays.
They also have a pretty long list of corporate supporters, and if you work for one of these companies, you should be able to get in for free with your corporate ID, with no advanced reservations required. Of course, restrictions apply.
Worth asking about anyway! You must present your corporate ID or membership card in person at the check-in desk.
Enter at the Main Entrance on Madison Avenue. The entrance is a new, modern glass structure that was recently completed and connects the Library to the Residence. It is built where a courtyard originally stood, and it is a very good use of the space, I think. It’s very lovely really and has a few exhibit pieces on display, such as the archetect’s model of the original library facade. The Morgan Cafe is also located in this area, where you can get tea or lunch, seated in filtered daylight.
The original front facade of the library, facing 36th street, is now part of the garden.
The Morgan Garden is open during visitor hours on Friday, Saturday & Sunday.
It’s included with your ticket, but you have to walk around to a different entrance on 36th Street.
I wasn’t too impressed with the garden, but maybe I was there a tad too early in the season. Seeing the original facade of the building that faces 36th street is pretty cool though, (especially after seeing the model) so definitely worth taking the short walk around the corner and entering the garden to see it.
The Morgan Shop and Morgan Café
The Morgan Shop.
Admission is not required to visit the Morgan Shop and Morgan Café.
I would definitely suggest checking out the gift shop after your visit - if for nothing else but the rooms it occupies! The shop is located on the first floor of the residence and one room has pretty columns and ceiling adornments and the other is richly-wood paneled. Lovely!
They sell a lot of historically themed items, particular to their exhibits, and many book-related gifts - really nice things, and plenty of variety. I was there on a girls’ day out and we had fun trying on vintage hats!
The Café looked a bit crowded when we were there on a Saturday afternoon, so we didn’t partake. But the menu looks delightful! I like that they do an Afternoon Tea service. That’s right after my anglophile heart!
What’s near the Morgan Library & Museum?
Well, we would have liked to partake in the Afternoon Tea at the Morgan Cafe, as three ladies loose in NYC, but alas, it was too crowded.
No worries, though, there are plenty of restaurants in midtown Manhattan to please any taste. Our tastes that day had a hankering for soup dumplings!
I want to give a shout-out to where we wound up going for lunch - Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao.
Originally established in Queens, Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao now has nine locations and has earned a Michelin Guide recommendation. We walked over to the location that is across from the Empire State Building - easy to find and not far from the Morgan Library. The soup dumplings really are delicious - I would venture to say perhaps the best I’ve ever tasted.
Pro tip - make sure you scan the QR code at the front desk when you arrive. This puts you into the queue. This place is pretty famous and can get busy, but we didn’t wait very long - only two groups ahead of us and it was a Saturday.
Of course, there is plenty to do in Midtown Manhattan. For some ideas, check out the blog post John wrote about What to see during a New York City layover.
This post was researched and written by Debbie of the Empty Nest Explorers. You can learn more about the Empty Nest Explorers here
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New York City is home to many famous museums.
The Morgan Library, located in the heart of midtown Manhattan, might be a bit lesser known, but it is well worth a visit as it is somewhat unique and a pretty easy visit with its central location and interesting collection.