Appellate Division Law Library

The library features several special collections on a variety of subjects. Several of these are law-related, such as the Women in the Law Collection and the Reuben Hyde Walworth Chancellor's Collection, and others are of more general subject matter, like our Local History and Maps collections. All of the special collections are available for use on-site in the library.

M. Dolores Denman Women in the Law Collection

Dedicated to the memory of Justice M. Dolores Denman on May 21, 2003, the Women in the Law Collection was created to archive speeches, judicial decisions and other important documents from prominent women jurists along with relevant contemporary and historical books and periodicals.

Reuben Hyde Walworth Chancellor's Collection

This collection was part of the library of New York's Court of Chancery which was abolished in 1846. Chancellor Reuben Hyde Walworth was the last chancellor. The Seventh Judicial District was created in 1847 with its headquarters in Rochester. In 1849, the judges and attorneys of the district petitioned the state legislature to move the Chancellor's Library to Rochester. Several other communities were also urging their claims to the library, so the legislature, by the Laws of 1849, Chapter 300, granted the judges of the state Court of Appeals the authority to move the library to some point west of the Hudson, or to divide it and locate the sections at suitable western points. The judges ultimately chose to divide the collection between the courthouses of Syracuse and Rochester.

Today, the Chancellor's Collection is housed in the library's Rare Book Room. Contact us if you are interested in accessing this unique historic collection. More information about the history of the library is available here.

Treasure Books / Rare Books

No existing records can be found to explain how the "Treasure Books" found their way into the law library's collection, but they are an interesting mixture of imprints from the late sixteenth through mid-nineteenth centuries. Written in English, Latin and French, there are some three hundred treasure books covering a variety of legal topics, such as: history of the law, biography, accounts of famous trials. Authors include Tapping Reeve and Sir William Blackstone. This collection includes books with publishers' imprints as early as 1565. If you're interested in accessing any of these titles, just let us know.

Local History

The library maintains a small local history section which details the history of the City of Rochester, the county of Monroe, and the surrounding area. This collection features writings by the Rochester Historical Society, Blake McKelvey, and other local authors.

Judicial Portraits

Throughout the library and courthouse is an extensive collection of portraits maintained by the library. The collection includes portraits of nearly all Justices of the Fourth Department from its inception to the present day. Other historical portraits of local judges of the Seventh Judicial District are also on display. Many of the portraits have been scanned and uppoaded to the New York Hertiage website.

Maps

The library owns a substantial collection of historic maps, with a primary focus on western New York. A complete listing of our maps holdings can be found here.

Rochester City Directories

Our collection of directories begins in 1845 and includes most editions through last year.