About Herman B Wells Library

Welcome to the Herman B Wells Library, an iconic limestone building with its own urban legend and a cameo in Bloomington's 1979 Academy-Award-winning movie, Breaking Away.

You are welcome here. The students, faculty, IU staff, Indiana residents, and visiting researchers who come to our spaces add up to thousands of visitors every day. (Use our computers to access licensed databases and subscriptions and check out books with an Indiana Resident Borrowers card you can get at the Circulation Desk, bring a state identification such as a driver's license.) 

Check out the "stacks" in our East Tower, home to millions of books. Scholars especially appreciate our on-site collections supporting IU’s international and area studies, including  research collections relevant to African Studies, Russian and East European Studies, Uralic and Altaic Studies, East Asian Studies, and West European Studies. The Folklore Collection here is one of the world's largest. The upper floors of the East Tower offer hundreds of spaces of quiet study.

On the main floor of the East Tower, students and faculty use the Scholars' Commons for reservable collaboration/study rooms, Circulation and the Reference Desk. Many campus programs and library workshops are held here in Hazelbaker Hall. 

Across the lobby, students use the West Tower to access the Learning Commons for group study, Writing Tutorial Services, and Crimson Card services. This is the place to find a Makerspace designed for all students, staff and faculty. 

On the ground floor find the Bookmark[et] Eatery, a Media School classroom, the Black Film Center & Archives, and the Moving Image Archive with its state-of-the-art Screening Room.  Media Services wants to invite you to visit to check out video games and DVDs, build a Lego masterpiece or play a board game with friends. 

The Wells Library Building & Collections Directory is the place to find a comprehensive list of the many additional service points and IU units in one of Bloomington's largest and most well-known buildings, named to honor the legacy of Herman B Wells and his 70-year career at Indiana University.

  • IU Bloomington has served as a Federal Depository since 1881.  You can find Government Documents on the second floor, along with access to Indiana's largest map collection. This is also the place to find microfilm and microfiche records and equipment. 
  • The University Archives reading room and exhibition space is on the fourth floor of the East Tower. With an estimated 18,000 cubic feet of records and papers in all formats, it is the largest and most comprehensive source of information on the history and culture of Indiana University.
  • The Wells Library is proud to be home to Indiana University's Graduate School and Office of Undergraduate Education.

 

Additional Information about Wells Library Facilities & Services

Please also see Wells Library Services for additional service information.

  • Services for Library Users with Disabilities within the Herman B Wells Library
  • For a list of spaces and Partner Units in the East and West Towers of the library, see the Wells Library Building and Collections Directory.
  • InfoShare Days 
    As a popular destination and dependable source for trustworthy information, the Herman B Wells Library attracts thousands of students and other visitors daily. Groups affiliated with IU who wish to benefit from this high-visibility location may participate in InfoShare, a monthly information exchange for members of the academic community. Groups may, for example, promote an event, survey IU students, or recruit members. More information about policies and reservation request form
  • Lost and Found
    Lost something in the Wells Library? Found an item you'd like to turn in?
    Visit the Circulation Desk in the East Tower or phone 812-855-4673 during open hours.
  • Lactation Room 
    Healthy IU and the Libraries have collaborated to provide private, dedicated space, supplies, and equipment for a lactation room in the Wells Library, Room 258, on the second floor of the East Tower. The room is located in the Government Information, Maps and Microform Services Department (GIMMS) to the left of the freight elevator and across from the men's room. A key is needed to access the room; it can be checked out from the GIMMS Service Desk.
    Information about other lactation rooms located on campus can be found on the Healthy IU site.
  • Screening Library-owned Media Items for Large Groups (Instructors Only)
    IUB instructors can make arrangements to use a library-owned media item, and show a film to large groups in the Herman B Wells Library, Media Showing Room, E174. E174 maximum occupancy is 50 people.
    Schedule viewing of library-owned media in the Wells Library (Faculty & Instructors only)
  • Wells Library Telephone
    There is a free telephone available to visitors at the South end of the Wells Library Lobby for local calls. Long Distance calls may be made using a calling card or reversing charges.
  • Emergency Action Plan
    This document includes building-related emergency information: emergency contacts, what to do if you need assistance during an emergency, location of emergency equipment such as AEDs and first aid kits, etc. Emergencies covered by this document include active aggressor, earthquake, fire, severe weather, suspicious activity, and utility failures.

Building Policies

Additional Library Policies