Subject guides: Architecture, Design and Planning: Locating Information : Buildings and Historic Buildings

How do I find information on buildings?

Library Catalog
For search terms that could aid your search see the Searching the Library catalog box.
Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals
International coverage of architecture, design and planning research.
Select: EBSCOhost Research Database
JSTOR
Full-text of major academic journals and scholarly literature from around the world
Proquest Central
A major full-text database covering humanities, social sciences, education, health and medical, science and technology and business and management.
archINFORM
This web site and searchable database covers detailed information from over 18,000 built and unrealized projects from various architects and planners.
Google Scholar
Search Google Scholar for a range of scholarly resources, including journal articles, conference papers, theses, books, preprints, abstracts, and technical reports. Google Scholar search results will include resources from the University of Sydney online collections.
Google
Google offers access to a wide range of resources both print and in other formats not all scholarly.

City of Sydney buildings and plans

The Dictionary of Sydney
The Dictionary of Sydney is a website about the history of Sydney
The Dictionary is updated regularly to include new content.
Historical Atlas of Sydney
The Historical Atlas of Sydney provides access to the key maps and map series held by the City of Sydney Archives.
The maps range from the 19th and 20th centuries and were produced variously by Council itself, other government authorities or private surveying firms and individuals. The Historical Atlas also provides background to Council’s evolving boundaries from 1842 until today.
The City of Sydney Archives
The City of Sydney Archives is the City's corporate memory with more than 15,000 shelf-meters of archival records, including large numbers of plans and photographs. More material is added to this collection every year
State Library NSW: Architectural Plans & Technical Drawing Collections
The Library collects architectural plans and drawings to document the built environment, capturing the range of building styles and methods shaping the heritage and culture of people in New South Wales
Trove
Find and get Australian and online resources:books, images, historic newspapers, maps, music, archives and more
National Library of Australia
The National Library of Australia is the largest reference library in Australia

Tips for searching and terminology to use.

To find specifics on a building, do a Keyword search for the name of the building or the name of the architect(s).

e.g. Building Name

e.g. "Lloyd Wright" AND building name

Note some buildings may be known under several names.

Another strategy: Search for the architectural period and/or style rather than the building or architect's name.

For example, to find plans for the Chartres Cathedral, you could search the catalog for books on "Gothic architecture". Once you find a promising book, you could then browse the index for references to the Chartres Cathedral.

Keywords: Terms for help with searching

These search terms can help you in your search for building information/plans:

Aerial Images, Axonometrics, Computer Generated Images, Designs, Diagrams
Drawings,Elevations,Illustrations,Maps,Models
Photographs,Plans,Site Plans,Sketches

University of Sydney Buildings Information

University of Sydney information on building plans, landscape plans, and maintenance contact :

Campus Infrastructure Services (CIS).

General inquiries: 1300 226 787.

Email: campus.assist@sydney.edu.au.

Heritage and conservation

The University has conservation management plans for numerous buildings on our main campus. The documents are also available by email – please contact Campus Infrastructure Services : campus.assist@sydney.edu.au.

University of Sydney Library
The Library also holds resources pertaining to both the history of the university and it's historic buildings.
THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY ARCHIVES
The archives were established in 1954 and holds the administrative records of the University of Sydney as well as the records of institutions which have amalgamated with the
Trove
Find and get Australian and online resources:books, images, historic newspapers, maps, music, archives and more
State Library of NSW
The State Library of New South Wales is a large reference and research library open to the public. It is the oldest library in Australia