Widener, like all of Harvard’s libraries, is currently closed to the public as part of a University-wide effort to reduce the number of people on campus amid the coronavirus pandemic. However, there’s a new way to visit — and you don’t even need a Harvard ID.
Harvard Library has partnered with a digital production company to create a 360-degree virtual tour of Widener, using a model constructed from thousands of photographs taken inside the building. Viewers can gaze up at the skylights of the Loker Reading Room, wander through the lower-level stacks, and examine the bookshelves holding Harry Widener’s personal collection. Along the tour, markers indicate an option to read historical details.