The Special Collections library has received nearly $6,000 from the National Endowment for the Humanities to help preserve its materials. The Preservation Assistance Grant will pay for archival supplies to store and preserve the many artifacts, books and library materials.
¿Archival supplies are quite expensive,¿ says Danette Cook Adamson, special collections librarian and project director. ¿Archival supplies have to be chemically neutral. There can¿t be a risk of a chemical reaction in the item itself and what it¿s stored in it.¿
The Special Collections & University Archives, located on the fourth floor of the University Library, includes a wealth of information related to the university¿s history, as well as the Rose Float program. The diverse collection also includes first editions of selected British and American authors; almost 2,000 volumes of world poetry; extensive artifacts and documents from Robert Lawrence Balzer, a respected wine journalist and wine educator; correspondence, articles, manuscripts and other printed materials related to Professor Emerita and noted poet Virginia Hamilton Adair.
Some of the supplies include acid-free folders and boxes, archival storage bags, protective sleeves for photographs, and environmental monitoring equipment that track temperature and humidity in the library.
For more information about the Special Collections, visit www.cpp.edu/~library/specialcollections.