Our history
In 1994, the Internet was in its early days, and William G. Bowen—then president of the Mellon Foundation—conceived of JSTOR to solve a growing problem: university and college libraries were running out of space for expanding scholarly collections.
His idea was transformative: convert printed journals into digital form and store them in a shared online archive. This innovation helped reduce storage costs, free up physical space, and vastly improve access to research.
Decades later, JSTOR is a thriving nonprofit working with more than 14,000 libraries, museums, and publishers worldwide. Through our products and services, JSTOR has transformed access to scholarly materials—including journals, books, images and other primary sources—to reach more than 100 million users each year.
Sign up for updates
Never miss a thing. Get updates from JSTOR delivered straight to your inbox.
By signing up you agree to our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time by clicking on the provided link on any marketing message.
"*" indicates required fields
What will the next 30 years bring?
Explore more about JSTOR’s evolution and impact.
Charting the course of digital art history: University of California San Diego Library from Artstor to JSTOR
Explore how UC San Diego Library built a transformative 200,000-image digital collection for Artstor, its impact over two decades, and how the Visual Arts Legacy Collection enters a new chapter on JSTOR.
Teaching with the American Prison Newspapers collection
Curricular materials, guides, and readings designed to help educators and students teach with the American Prison Newspapers collection, centering incarcerated voices and critical inquiry.
North Carolina State University becomes part of JSTOR Digital Stewardship Services charter program
North Carolina State University has joined JSTOR’s Digital Stewardship Services charter program, partnering to advance AI-assisted tools like JSTOR Seeklight and accelerate the processing and discovery of unique digital archival collections.
Pressing play with THEI: Excellence, agency, and the architecture of opportunity
The Tennessee Higher Education Initiative (THEI) rejects the idea that incarcerated students should accept “whatever is available.” Instead, their Navigating Forward project is built on the belief that learners inside deserve excellence—resources that are not only functional but dignifying.
AI research tool promotional toolkit
Access ready-made outreach materials, training guides, FAQs, and social media content to help your community understand and effectively use JSTOR’s AI research tool for discovery and research.
Artstor promotional toolkit
Let’s get off on the right foot! Boost awareness of Artstor on JSTOR’s rich content and powerful tools with these ready-to-use resources. From eye-catching social […]
Path to Open: Communications toolkit for publishers
Access ready-to-use messaging, social media assets, and outreach guidance to help university presses and scholarly publishers promote their participation in Path to Open and highlight their open access impact.
Path to Open: Communications toolkit for libraries
Access ready-to-use messaging, social media assets, and outreach resources to help your library promote its participation in Path to Open and highlight the impact of supporting sustainable open access models.
JSTOR Digital Stewardship Services promotional toolkit
Access ready-to-use messaging, social media assets, and training resources to help your institution promote its participation in JSTOR Digital Stewardship Services and engage your campus community.