Trexler Library
The interdisciplinary heart of Muhlenberg College and your hub for information, research assistance, study space, and collaboration.
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Hours and Directions
Trexler Library is open over 90 hours per week during the academic year to support the research and study needs of Muhlenberg students, faculty, and staff.
Important Access Information
- After 8:00 p.m.: Access is restricted to Muhlenberg ID holders ONLY. You must swipe your ID to enter.
- Closing Time: External doors lock 15 minutes prior to the posted closing time. Please plan accordingly.
- Changes: Hours may change due to holidays, campus closures, or inclement weather. Check the schedule on our website for real-time updates.
Trexler Library exists primarily for Muhlenberg College students, faculty and staff.
We also welcome the public both as a community service and in our capacity as a Federal Depository Library. For more information, see our Guide: Using Trexler Library.
Location & Parking
Trexler Library is located on the campus of Muhlenberg College, on the south side of Chew Street at 2400 Chew Street, Allentown, PA.
- Street Parking: Available along Chew Street, but is subject to Allentown City parking regulations. Please obey all street signs.
- Library Lot: Parking in the lot behind Trexler requires a current campus permit/parking pass at all times.
Parking questions? Contact Campus Safety for parking registration details.
In-Person and Virtual Services
Trexler Library is committed to ensuring that its patrons have access to resources and information. During the fall and spring semesters, the building is open 90 hours a week.
Trexler Library has three floors filled with nearly 350,000 physical items including more than 19,000 movies, CDs, musical scores, and audiobooks. Beyond the building, Muhlenberg researchers can access 2.3 million ebooks, journal articles, and other electronic items.
Though the library has an extensive collection, it is not possible to have every single item someone may need. Interlibrary Loan is an inclusive service where Muhlenberg researchers have the ability to borrow materials worldwide. Physical books are shipped to the library for one-location check out, while specific articles or chapters are typically delivered electronically. Find more information below.
Personalized research assistance is available from our reference librarians. Each librarian is responsible for particular academic subjects and is available in-person or virtually.
Interlibrary Loan
The Interlibrary Loan (ILL) service provides access to materials not owned by Trexler Library.
ILL supports the study and research needs of Muhlenberg College students, faculty, staff, alumni, and some affiliates.
The ILL office will gladly obtain materials from any library for our students, faculty, and staff. College students, faculty, and staff may also borrow materials directly on-site from other Lehigh Valley college libraries. As part of the larger ILL community, we also provide items from college collections to libraries around the world.
To request an article, book, chapter, and/or dissertation that Trexler Library does not own, please complete our Interlibrary Loan Request Form or search our catalog for an exact record and place the request that way. Please contact 484-664-3510 or [email protected] to determine the status of your interlibrary loan requests.
Research
Research is a process of exploration that requires both creativity and strategy. Researchers must brainstorm the different ways that people may be discussing their topic of interest and the disciplines and avenues in which these conversations take place.
The guide Get Started with Library Research is a good place to begin if you need help with research basics. It lays out the research process and the language associated with information resources to allow researchers to make efficient use of their time.
Each database contains a different set of information; a search will be unsuccessful if not done in a relevant database. Disciplinary subject guides (like history, psychology, or biology) will direct researchers to the databases best matched to those disciplines. There are also guides created for specific courses, which are listed on the left-hand side of the disciplinary subject guides. Trexler Library provides access to more than 100 databases, and librarians have created subject guides to help researchers identify the ones that will best support your work.
The Trexler Library librarians are available to discuss any part of the research process, develop searches, and answer questions. For research help, please contact our reference librarians at [email protected].
Special Collections and Archives
Trexler Library’s Special Collections and College Archives are the repository for Muhlenberg’s collections of rare books, manuscripts, photographs, sound and visual recordings, maps, and ephemera, including material relating to the college’s history. Special Collections is responsible for collecting, preserving, exhibiting, and providing access to these unique and rare primary materials for the use of scholars and the Muhlenberg community for research or in the service of instructional programs.
Some of our digitized special collections include:
- Archives and Manuscripts
- Historical Map Collections
- Lehigh Valley LGBT Community Archive
- Muhlenberg College Collection (College Archives)
- Muhlenberg College World War II Correspondence Collection
- Muhlenberg College World War II Navy V-12 and V-5 Collection
- Pennsylvania German Collection
- Rare Books Collection
- The Ciarla (Muhlenberg College yearbook)
- The Muhlenberg Weekly
The Special Collections office is located on Level B of Trexler Library, to the left of the elevator and stairwell. Materials may be viewed by appointment from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Making an appointment with the Head of Special Collections and College Archives in advance of your arrival will ensure that your research materials are ready for your visit.
The Special Collections are available for use by Muhlenberg College students, faculty, staff, and persons with a reasonable need to use the materials. Special Collections materials are non-circulating. Certain exceptions may be made if the condition of the material will allow circulation, and the need for use warrants it. Some materials have microform editions or circulating copies. Patrons will be referred to these first.
Most of the Special Collections material is catalogued and can be found online in the Trexler Library Catalog. Uncatalogued items, such as faculty journal articles, realia, ephemera, and audio visual materials in the Muhlenberg College and Pennsylvania German Collections are also available for research.
Contact Special Collections and Archives at [email protected].
Writing Center
Trexler Library is home to Muhlenberg’s Writing Center, which supports students across disciplines as they strive to improve their writing and, by extension, their thinking.
This library is a member of the Federal Depository Library Program.
Learn more.