History of the Collection

Frank Knox Morton Pennypacker (1872-1956) was a printer, publisher, historian, bibliophile and author of books and articles. He started collecting books and other documents relating to Long Island in his early twenties.

In the fall of 1930, Mr. Pennypacker presented to the East Hampton Library, by deed of gift, 7,314 items of Long Island material. At his death the collection contained over 24,000 items and is still growing today.

He described the objective of the collection as "a library of books and documents aspiring to contain every book written about Long Island or Long Island families, and every representative book having a native of Long Island for its author."

Source: East Hampton Star May 28, 1970, p.2.

A History of the Morton Pennypacker Long Island Collection by M. Bruce Maxian.
Brookville, N.Y.: Long Island University, 1966.