Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Pastel de nata
Portugal • 8 days, 7 nights
Portugal: A Culinary Adventure from Porto to Lisbon
from
Italy • 9 days, 8 nights
Flavors of Italy: Roman Carbonara, Florentine Steak & Venetian Cocktails
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
The wall commemorating 11,908 Jewish victims of the Shoah from Frankfurt.
Börneplatz Memorial
Entrance to the munitions area of the lower part of the bunker
Simserhof
Carlos Calderón Yruegas calls the villa his personal playground.
Villa Tabaiba
Apples and pears, Spitalfields Market.
Brick Lane Roundels
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
The exterior of the Hall of Records.
Atlas Obscura Mailbag: Urban Exploration, Illegal Carvings, and Repeat Vacations
about 20 hours ago
Biosphere 2 campus (2016)
Biosphere 2: How Volunteers Survived for 2 Years in an Airtight Habitat
1 day ago
Places like Forest Grove linger on the edge of wilderness and civilization.
Listening for Echoes of the Forest Grove Sound
1 day ago
Longwood House, where Napoleon Bonaparte spent his final years.
The Longwood House: Napoleon Bonaparte’s Beautiful Prison
2 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Georgia Atlanta Robert C. Williams Paper Museum

Robert C. Williams Paper Museum

One of the world’s largest collections of paper memorabilia chronicles 4,000 years of papermaking.

Atlanta, Georgia

Added By
Edward Denny
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
The Robert C. Williams Paper Museum.   Daderot/Public domain
The Robert C. Williams Paper Museum.   Daderot/Public domain
Document on grain distribution, papyrus, 2nd century BC.   Daderot/Public domain
Manuscript in Toba-Batak language, central Sumatra, early 1800s.   Daderot/Public domain
Adams letter press, c. 1820.   Daderot/Public domain
Entrance to the Robert C. Williams Paper Museum.   TallQuasar/cc by-sa 3.0
Exhibit in the Robert C. Williams Paper Museum.   Daderot/Public domain
Paper Machine invented by Nicholas Louis Robert, 1798.   Daderot/Public domain
Hollander Beater   Daderot/Public domain
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
The sign at the front driveway entrance   jessemiers / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
The 3rd African Map (Tertia Africae Tabula) from Ptolemy’s Geography.   Claudio Tolomeo/public domain
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Despite the rise of electronic media, the average U.S. citizen uses over 600 pounds of paper each year, amounting to a total of 187 billion pounds nationwide. This museum charts humankind’s relationship with paper, from the Sumerians and Egyptians through the modern era. With more than 2,000 books and 100,000 artifacts related to the history of papermaking, the collection is definitely on a roll.

Visitors will find it difficult to remain stationary in the museum as they tear from one exhibit to another, reading pulp stories of yesteryear and learning about the modern green technologies designed to manage forests and greenhouse gases. One exhibit focuses on technologies dating back to 1300, and one of the highlights is the story of the first mold and deckle brought from Europe to the New World in 1690, which touched off paper production in the American colonies.  

The museum was founded in 1939 at the Massachusettes Institute of Technology by paper expert and collector Dard Hunter, who came from a family of printers and was a follower of the American Arts and Crafts Movement in the early 20th century. Considered one of the preeminent papermakers and printers of his age, his work has been featured at the Smithsonian and the New York Public Library.

The museum was revived in 1989 and moved to Atlanta, where today it is located at the Renewable Bioproducts Institute at Georgia Institute of Technology. The current incarnation is named for Robert C. Williams, who was CEO of the James River Paper Company, once the largest paper company in the world. His business acumen and devotion to the museum earned him induction in the Paper Industry International Hall of Fame in 1998. 

Related Tags

Paper History Manuscripts Museums Museums And Collections Technology

Know Before You Go

The museum is open 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and admission is free. It's located at the Renewable Bioproducts Institute on the Georgia Institute of Technology campus.

Community Contributors

Added By

Edward Denny

Edited By

Rick W, Meg, jessemiers, Collector of Experiences

  • Rick W
  • Meg
  • jessemiers
  • Collector of Experiences

Published

October 23, 2018

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.n-georgia.com/american-museum-paper-making.html
  • https://www.paperdiscoverycenter.org
  • From Appleton to Atlanta: The Institute's First 75 Years by Megan Murray Wilhoit
  • https://www.virginiahistory.org/collections-and-resources/how-we-can-help-your-research/researcher-resources/finding-aids/james
Robert C. Williams Paper Museum
500 10th St NW
Atlanta, Georgia
United States
33.780985, -84.40457
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Kendeda Building

Atlanta, Georgia

miles away

'Adalanta Desert'

Atlanta, Georgia

miles away

Trap Music Museum

Atlanta, Georgia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Atlanta

Atlanta

Georgia

Places 64
Stories 9

Nearby Places

Kendeda Building

Atlanta, Georgia

miles away

'Adalanta Desert'

Atlanta, Georgia

miles away

Trap Music Museum

Atlanta, Georgia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Atlanta

Atlanta

Georgia

Places 64
Stories 9

Related Places

  • Villa Rosario.

    Banyeres de Mariola, Spain

    Valencian Paper Museum

    A lovely look back at the manufacture and use of paper in all its forms.

  • Ewing Township, New Jersey

    The Sarnoff Collection

    A surprising museum of 20th-century technology.

  •  Karpeles Manuscript Library.

    Duluth, Minnesota

    Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum

    Home to part of the world’s largest private collection of original manuscripts and documents.

  • Kiosks on display.

    Stoke Heath, England

    National Telephone Kiosk Collection

    An ode to the classic piece of British street furniture.

  • Inside the old model museum

    Washington, D.C.

    The Old Patent Model Museum

    During the Industrial Revolution this “Temple of Invention” was full of intricate miniature machines and gadgets.

  • One of the galleries in the modern section of the Manchester Jewish Museum.

    Manchester, England

    Manchester Jewish Museum

    A Victorian synagogue-turned-museum chronicles centuries of Jewish life.

  • Aldeburgh, England

    Moot Hall

    One of the best preserved Tudor public buildings in Britain was once used for witch trials.

  • The museum includes tools like ink blocks and iron letterpresses, and even a foot-operated press called a Heidelberg Press that was used to print money.

    Old Homosassa, Florida

    Old Mill House Gallery & Printing Museum

    Explore the history of printing in this unique museum owned by a longtime printer.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.