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More Information

Register and request materials

Register as a researcher and request materials online before visiting the Rubenstein Library Reading Room.

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Ask the Hartman Center staff.

The John W. Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History is a centralized repository focused on primary sources documenting the history of advertising, sales, and marketing.  The Center houses the collections of ad agencies, trade associations and individuals, including the J. Walter Thompson Company Archives and the Consumer Reports Archives.  Our collections are housed in the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Research guides

These research guides highlight many of the Hartman Center's holdings related to these topics but are not comprehensive listings of our collections. Use the Rubenstein Library catalog to search all of our print and archival collections.

Digitized collections

Our digital collections include print and television advertisements, newsletters from the J. Walter Thompson Company, cosmetic trade samples, and more.

Student curated projects

The Hartman Center has participated in two Story+ projects, a six-week summer paid reserach experience for Duke students--graduate and undergraduate--interested in exploring approaches to humanities research.  The Hartman Center's projects combined original archival research with storytelling on a public platform that would showcase their research and offer future researchers fodder for their own exploration of our collections.

Other Repositories

A list of other repositories and cultural institutions that house collections relating to the history of advertising, marketing, business and technology.