Information

Online Collections Database

Brookside Museum maintains a collection of historic artifacts that tell the story of Saratoga County. Our collection contains over 20,000 items, and includes photographs, objects, manuscripts, and books. 

Our collections are stored on-site in our historic building. Because we are permanently chartered through the New York State we strive to meet or exceed collections care Standards as outlined by the Board of Regents. We are committed to making our historic items accessible to the public while balancing preservation needs. We strongly encourage historical research using our collections. 

The online database is accessible to the public for research purposes, and is available for browsing and searching online.  The database is separated into four search categories: photographs (including postcards), objects (anything three-dimensional), manuscripts (diaries, ledgers, etc.), and library (printed publications). The information you will have access to includes the object ID number, brief catalog information (sometimes including a description of the item you are interested in), and in the case of the photograph collection, a thumbnail image. 

About our library/ facility
Rules and regulations for library use
Donating historic items

Online Collections Database
Surname Files
Vertical Files
Resources outside of Brookside

Photocopy services
Image Reproductions
Research Services

If you are interested in assisting the staff in scanning historic photographs or photographing objects, please contact us at volunteer@brooksidemuseum.org. 

This project would not be possible without the support of the New York State Council on the Arts and our other corporate sponsors.

The Adirondack Trust Company
Ballston Spa National Bank
Saratoga National Bank

How to use the database: 

1. Enter the database

2. Decide which category you want to search: photographs, objects, archives or library. 

Enter your search term

Examples of search terms . . . 
Mann . . . looking for a family surname 
Bottle . . . looking for a particular type of object 
Wooley . . . looking for items by a specific maker, manufacturer, or photographer
Milton . . . looking for an item from a specific town, city, or village 
1997.001.0001 . . . looking for an item by object ID number 

3. Jot down the Object ID# for any item you wish to get further information on. When contacting staff, please provide us with the full object id (This will be in the format yyyy.xxx.xxxx and is NOT a four-digit number).  Please allow 5 days for a response as staff time is extraordinarily limited. Copies of images may be ordered. Please visit the Image Reproductions page for more information and reproduction policies.  

Continue to the Database.