New Home for Archives & Special Collections

Over the winter break, the Archives & Special Collections relocated to the first floor of Martin Library of the Sciences. Please see the F&M Diplomat online article at http://bit.ly/gU57mK for more details!

New College History Published!

A new history of Franklin & Marshall College was published this past fall by Penn State University Press. Researched and authored by historian Sally F. Griffith, Liberalizing the Mind: Two Centuries of Liberal Eduction at Franklin & Marshall College represents the first comprehensive examination of the college's history in over fifty years.

(Teaser from PSU Press)
With its roots in the German Reformed denomination of Protestantism, Franklin & Marshall College has the distinction of being the first institution of higher learning in America founded (in 1787) for the purpose of educating students of German ethnic background. Liberalizing the Mind is a comprehensive narrative history of Franklin & Marshall College’s transformation from that tiny classical college for German American students into one of the nation’s preeminent liberal arts institutions. It combines analysis of historical context and institutional development with richly detailed accounts of dramatic periods such as the Civil War and the rebellious 1960s. 512 pages | 5 illustrations | 7 x 10 | 2010 | ISBN 978-0-271-03723-3 | cloth: $64.95

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Sally F. Griffith is an independent scholar. Among her previous publications are Home Town News: William Allen White and the Emporia Gazette (1989), an edition of The Autobiography of William Allen White (1990), and Serving History in a Changing World: The Historical Society of Pennsylvania in the Twentieth Century (2002).

Books of Hours Exhibition

"The Book of Hours: a Medieval Best-Seller" is an exhibition designed to introduce viewers to these best selling books of the Middle Ages. For 250 years, from the late 13th century to the early 16th, more Books of Hours were produced than any other type of book, including the Bible. Patrons delighted in commissioning Books of Hours whose cycles of pictures reflected their personal devotion, taste, and wealth.

The exhibit will run through August 31, 2010. Enjoy, and please post your comments!

Lancaster Architecture Collections

Three collections relating to Lancaster architecture have recently been added to Scholars Square. The Lancaster Architecture Collection features historic images from late 19th - early 20th century publications such as Art Work of Lancaster (1892). Two collections from the Wohlsen Construction Archive feature photographs and marketing material. Please visit the collections at

Lancaster Architecture Collection

Wohlsen Construction Archive Photograph Collection

Wohlsen Construction Archive Marketing and Advertising Collection

Recent Scholarship Exhibition

"From Collection to Publication, 2004-2009" is an exhibition designed to celebrate recent scholarship from the Archives & Special Collections. For each item, the final publication is cited, followed by the primary resource or collection used.

The exhibit will run through January 31, 2010. Enjoy, and please post your comments!

Framed Images in Shadek-Fackenthal Library

Beginning last spring, the following groups of framed historical and rare book images were installed in the library:

Periodicals Reading Room

Four framed shadow boxes featuring publications and artifacts documenting the history of Fackenthal Library from 1938 to 1983. Project funded by the Friends of the Library.

Mezzanine Level

Seventeen framed reproductions of rare books housed in the Archives & Special Collections. The images are part of a multi-phase “Footpaths to History” project funded by a grant from the Von Hess Foundation and designed by alum Jay Davidson Susanin ’87.

1^st Floor Lobby

One oversized framed image containing reproductions of the contents of two library time capsules - one from 1897, and the other from 1937. Also part of the "Footpaths to History" project.

40th Anniversary of Coeducation Projects

This past summer, the College Archives was heavily utilized by faculty, students, and administrators in preparation for the college' s 40th anniversary of coeducation. Projects included intensive research by student Hackman Scholars Alysse Vaccaro '11 and Johanna Schein '11, the production of a 40th anniversary "Women's Firsts" brochure, and the digitization of photographs and documents for numerous web and alumni print publications. To learn more, please visit the college's official 40th anniversary of coeducation site at http://www.fandm.edu/40yearsofcoed

Lancaster Tourism Exhibition

Take a tour through the history of Lancaster County tourism in the 20th century. Please enjoy our latest five-case exhibition featuring a survey of Lancaster County tourism from turn of the century trolley tours, to the modern re-vitalization of downtown Lancaster.

The exhibit will run through June 30, 2009. Please post your comments!

James Lapine Collection

The Archives & Special Collections is pleased to announce the availability of the James Lapine Collection.  The collection contains scripts, documents, publications, photographs, and audio-visual materials relating to the theatrical, television, and film work of Tony Award winning playwright and director James Lapine, F&M class of 1971.  To learn more, please visit the collection finding aid MS 72 James Lapine Collection.

F&M Student Newspaper Collection Updated

Franklin and Marshall College has now digitized 116 years of its student newspapers. Click on the link to view College Days (1873-1879); F&M Weekly (1891-1915); Student Weekly (1915-1964); College Reporter (1964-2001).

F&M Student Newspaper Collection, 1873-2001

WWI Poster Acquisitions

The Archives and Special Collections recently added two unique "homefront" posters to our WWI poster collection. The two posters highlight the important roles young women played in WWI stateside causes. Please learn more about our WWI poster collection by linking here. Additional information relating to WWI poster values and conservation can be found here.

The above poster is by noted artist Edward Penfield, ca. 1917.

Napoleon Collection Exhibition

One of the largest and most distinct rare book collections held by Franklin and Marshall is the 1,890 volume Watts de Peyster Collection: Napoleon Buonaparte assembled by General John Watts de Peyster (1821-1907).

Originally gifted to the Smithsonian Institution, the collection was transferred to Franklin and Marshall College in 1957 in recognition of General de Peyster's historical relationship as a major benefactor to the College Library. The collection consists of books, pamphlets and maps focusing on the Napoleonic era in Europe from the French Revolution of 1789 until the death of Napoleon in 1821. General de Peyster collected many of the items while traveling in Europe conducting research for his own biography of Napoleon, entitled Napoleone di Buonaparte (1896).

The exhibit will run through October 31, 2008. Enjoy, and please post your comments!

New A&SC Widescreen Display

The Archives and Special Collections is pleased to announce the installation of a 37" LCD display in the Reading Room. The new display will assist with seminar-level instruction sessions, and can be used to illustrate web sites, conduct database searching, deliver PowerPoint presentations, and show archival video clips and digital collections. When not in use for classes and research appointments, the display will be used as digital signage emphasizing patron registration and Reading Room rules of use.

Tales of True Crime Exhibition

Now open on the main level of Shadek-Fackenthal Library is our latest exhibit: Tales of True Crime from the Special Collections. Featuring true crime books, pamphlets, and broadsides from the Special Collections, the exhibit follows the history of true-crime publishing in the United States from the late-18th to 20th centuries. Most items involve chapbook (inexpensively printed, paper-covered pamphlets) tales of murders that occurred in 19th-century Pennsylvania. Of particular interest are items printed in the German-language that became part of the German-American community's folklore, such as the case of Susanna Cox, executed in 1809 for murder. This exhibit runs through May 2008.

Gift of Francis Bailey Newspapers

Dr. Russell and Judith Eaton of Mount Joy, PA recently gifted a significant collection of the Freeman's Journal newspaper to the F&M College Library. The newspapers are contained in a single, period-bound volume and cover the years 1789-1792. The collection consists of 173 consecutive four-page issues, plus 536 tax related broadsheet supplements, and three unique New Year's broadsheets. The Freeman's Journal was printed and published in Philadelphia by renowned 18th-century printer Francis Bailey. The volume is Francis Bailey's personal copy, containing ink annotations, corrections, and marginalia throughout. 

New F&M Institutional Repository

Scholars Square is a new, web-based institutional repository service that collects, preserves, indexes, and distributes the intellectual output of the college. Faculty, professional staff, and students are encouraged to submit scholarly research in the form of Article pre-prints and post-prints, Technical Reports, Working Papers, Conference Presentations, Honors Theses, and Audio/Visual materials. To learn more, go to the library's Scholars Square information page.

Miniature Books Exhibition

The latest Archives and Special Collections exhibition features an overview of miniature books with examples from the F&M Rare Books collection. Examples include miniatures of varying genres including bibles, bibliographies, literature, poetry, and artist's books. Displayed miniatures range in size from standard U.S. miniatures (3-2 inches) to ultra-micro miniatures (less than 1 inch).

Please enjoy this two case exhibition on the first floor of the library.

The 20th Century Audubon: Roger Tory Peterson

In June of 1952, Roger Tory Peterson received an honorary degree from Franklin and Marshall College. He would go on to receive 21 additional honorary degrees from colleges and universities throughout the United States. In honor of Peterson's many achievements as a painter, ornithologist, and photographer, the Archives and Special Collections is pleased to exhibit several signed Field Guides from our collections. Please enjoy this two case exhibition on the first floor of the library.

F&M Sheet Music Exhibition

Currently on exhibit in the lobby of Shadek-Fackenthal Library is a selection of late 19th - early 20th century sheet music from the holdings of the Archives and Special Collections. Before the advent of recorded music, printed sheet music was mass-marketed to the middle class for home entertainment (largely utilizing the piano). As new printing technologies developed, colorful cover art emerged to further market the songs contained inside.

Various musical genres and cultural themes are represented in the sheet music on display. The decline of sheet music is also addressed, as recorded music and radio-broadcasts quickly replaced home performance in the early 20th century.

The exhibit will run through December 31, 2007. Enjoy, and please post your comments!

F&M Fraktur Collection Being Digitized!

The F&M College Library is in the process of digitizing its Unger-Bassler Frakturschriften Collection. As a member of the NITLE DSpace Pilot Service, F&M has been using a shared instance of DSpace software to describe and present its 513 piece collection of hand-drawn and printed geburts und taufschein (birth and baptismal certificates), haus segen (house blessings), vorschrift (writing specimens), bucherzeichen (book plates), family registers, confirmation certificates, and drawings/sketches.

Please view the collection Finding Aid or visit the digital colllection directly at F&M Scholars Square