How to Use the Philadelphia Area Archives Site
Main content
1. Find a collection on the website.
![Student using a laptop at home](https://findingaids.library.upenn.edu/assets/how-to-use/find-collection-9afbe366c0906851e304b22daa4c4e8c5bd84f64452fb598d82c09c8165fc68d.jpg)
Search by creator, topic, repository, and keyword, and discover related collections across more than 200 regional repositories, large and small.
![Screenshot of homepage showing search field and facets](https://findingaids.library.upenn.edu/assets/how-to-use/search-or-filter2-793374dedee3cd95979fa2f353e7b4addcb421482b7c6d59244ba3643eeed434.png)
Use the search field at the top of the page or the filters on the left. To use both, set the filters first.
2. Note which institution holds the collection.
![Interface: After the collection title, the next line says 'Held at' name-of-repository](https://findingaids.library.upenn.edu/assets/how-to-use/identify-repository-418ab736a4f787f5e5ff7beacedf63d1fad89f47f9c6aed1303b03e08416e113.png)
3. Visit in person to see the collection.
![Interface: After the collection title, the next line says 'Held at' name-of-repository](https://findingaids.library.upenn.edu/assets/how-to-use/visit-in-person-a6e81476edbd0ec082810a79dead552242f740537b9b4716fc52bc52a4f9958d.jpg)