The Patricia W. and J. Douglas Perry Library is home to most of the Old Dominion University Libraries’ collections and services.  The University Library was opened in its present location off 43rd street in 1976, with a major addition and renovation completed in February 1998.  It was renamed the Patricia W. and J. Douglas Perry Library on December 10, 1998 and was dedicated on April 15, 1999. 

The Perry Library includes an impressive collection of monographs, periodicals, government publications, maps, various electronic resources, videos, and other media.  In addition to a comprehensive reference collection, the Perry Library houses a broad, diverse, general collection of materials to support the research needs of the students, faculty, and community at Old Dominion University.  The Old Dominion University Libraries combined collection is retrospective and current, old and new, traditional and non-traditional, print and digital; it serves to give the University Libraries both a physical and Web presence.

Additionally, the Perry Library contains the Digital Services Center which provides hardware, software, and assistance to faculty, staff and graduate students needing to integrate digital information resources into instruction, research, and coursework, and it contains the Old Dominion University Libraries’ Special Collections which includes the University Archives, Manuscripts, and books and printed material relating to Virginia and Tidewater History.

The F. Ludwig Diehn Composers Room provides services and resources related to the musical collections held by the Old Dominion University Libraries.  There are three key areas in the Diehn Composers Room:  The Listening Room, the Reading Room, and the Seminar Room.  The Listening Room provides music students, faculty, and community the opportunity to listen, individually or in groups, to the collection of scores, sound recordings, and DVDs available; many also use the room to compose.  The Reading Room offers a place for music scholars to study manuscripts and other music special collections materials, for students to study quietly, and for the Diehn Composers Room and Old Dominion University Libraries to host special events.  The Seminar Room gives the opportunity for small group meetings and presentations.

Music Special Collections in the F. Ludwig Diehn Composers Room include the Contemporary Music Research Collection which supports research leading to the performance of contemporary musical works, the Historical Recordings Collection which contains original 45s, 78s, and LPs that would be of interest to the researcher in music history, and the New Music Performance Collection which is a cooperative project of the Virginia Tidewater Consortium libraries to serve music faculty members who incorporate new music in their teaching.

The Diehn Composers Room and the Old Dominion University Libraries sponsor numerous presentations, exhibits, and performances that highlight a Diehn Composers Room composer or collection.  These events are open to the public.

Located inside the Diehn Fine and Performing Arts Center, the Elise N. Hofheimer Art Library includes a collection of over 10,000 volumes on architecture, sculpture, drawing, painting, print media, photography, and arts & crafts. 

The Elise N. Hofheimer Art Library also includes an art reference section, over 40 periodical subscriptions, and a guide to selected art resources on the Internet. 

Special features in the Art Library include:  a current display of new art books, catalogs & news bulletins of the Chrysler Museum of Art, a bibliography of the History of Art & Art Index, workstations with access to online resources, slide viewing tables, VCRs & monitors, and a photocopy machine. Art library news can be found at the Elise N. Hofheimer Art Library blog.