The core of the Library's collection is Julius Blum's personal library of books and portfolios on architectural metalworks loaned to the Museum in 1983. Walter Blum, President of Julius Blum and Company, Inc., donated the collection to the Museum in 1995.
The Library holdings include the Abe Sauer Collection (Museum founder and founder of Tennessee Fabricating), the Julius Blum Collection, the J. G. Braun Collection (Chicago area metal fabrication company founded in 1886), the Bill Gichner Collection (owner of Iron Age Antiques and dealer in rare books), as well as contributions from authors, metal artists, friends and members of the Museum, and institutions such as the Cooper-Hewitt, Winterthur, the Harn Museum, the Dallas Museum of Art, and the Morris Museum of Art.
In 1993, the Artist-Blacksmiths' Association of North America transferred its collection of books, video tapes and slides to the Blum Library which also serves as a repository for the ABANA archives and chapter newsletters.
The Library's collection of over 6000 books and portfolios, over 10,000 slides and photographs, and numerous video tapes is currently housed in a commercial storage facility because there is no room in the Museum. A few boxes at a time are brought to the Museum where the titles are entered into a database. Then the books are repacked and returned to the storage facility.
A Capital Campaign is underway to preserve an historic 1880s building to house the Library collection.
