Special Collections Research Center, College of William and Mary
From ArchivesWiki
Swem Library’s Special Collections Research Center is a learning lab for students, much like a science lab, except the raw materials we offer for your experimentation and observation are original manuscripts, photographs, rare books, sheet music, maps, and other unique or rare treasures documenting humanity’s history and culture. The SCRC defines and enhances the history of the university and promotes and preserves the scholarly pursuits of its faculty, students, alumni, visiting scholars, and friends. The SCRC contributes to the excellence of our scholarly reputation by providing the College with the rare books and unique manuscript and archival materials that make primary research possible.
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[edit] Address and Contact Info
Address: Special Collections Research Center College of William and Mary Earl Gregg Swem Library P.O. Box 8794 Williamsburg, VA 23187-8794
Telephone & fax: (757) 221-3090, (757) 221-5440
Email: spcoll@wm.edu
Website: http://www.swem.wm.edu/scrc/
Principal contacts for the collection: SCRC Staff
[edit] Visiting the SCRC
The Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) is open to the general public. All researchers are required to provide a valid photo ID during each visit to the SCRC to use collections and complete a registration at the time of your first visit. Researchers may be required to complete a registration form during subsequent visits if a length of time has elapsed. Detailed information about visiting the SCRC including registration, rules, and procedures is available online.
[edit] Hours and Directions
Hours vary based upon the time of year, specifically when classes are in session at the College of William and Mary. Consult the Special Collections Research Center's hours webpage for current information. Directions and parking information is also available online. Williamsburg is approximately 50 miles east of Richmond, 50 miles northwest of Norfolk, 150 miles southeast of Washington, D.C., and 200 miles from Raleigh, NC.
[edit] Restrictions
Individual collections may have restrictions in place due to preservation concerns, donor agreements, privacy laws, or other regulations. Most collections will include this information in the finding aid, but researchers are always encouraged to contact a staff member for assistance.
[edit] Reproductions and Permissions
The SCRC offers a variety of photographic and digital services for library patrons. For complete details including the list of fees and documents related to securing permission to publish material from the collection, see the SCRC's website. All photocopying and scanning is completed by SCRC staff. Researchers are permitted to use their own digital camera in the SCRC with the completion of a form.
[edit] Research Services for Offsite Patrons
The SCRC can provide limited research services for a fee for off-site patrons. The charge is $25/hour for a limit of two hours. Research requests should be submitted in writing via mail to: SCRC Research Service, Swem Library, PO Box 8794, Williamsburg, VA 23187-8794, or via email to spcoll@wm.edu. See the SCRC's Research Services webpage for detailed instructions.
[edit] Online Catalogs and Finding Aids
[edit] SCRC Collections Database
The most comprehensive access to Manuscript Collections and University Archives collections in the Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) is primarily through this database launched in summer 2007. Descriptions ranging from brief records through complete finding aids are available for most collections in the SCRC.
[edit] University Archives Online Card Catalog
The SCRC Collections Database is the first place to go for access to University Archives and has the most up-to-date information about collections. The University Archives Online Card Catalog--digitized from the original in the SCRC--sometimes provides more detailed access to particular people or subjects and should also be checked. The card catalog notes where information can be found within the various University Archives collections and groups of records.
[edit] Library Catalog
Swem Library's online catalog includes descriptions of processed manuscripts, rare books, and newspapers. William and Mary doctoral dissertations, master's theses, and senior honors theses as well as other selected University Archives materials are also indexed in the online catalog with additional collections added on an ongoing basis.
To find items in Swem's Rare Books, go to the "Advanced Search" feature, select Swem Library as the library, and select "Rare Books" as the item type. To find items in Swem's Manuscript Collections, go to the "Advanced Search" feature, select Swem Library as the library, and select "Manuscripts" as the item type.
[edit] The Flat Hat Online
A beta version of a database allowing users to browse and conduct keyword searches of issues of the student newspaper The Flat Hat is available online. All issues from September 1939 through May 1950 as well as most issues from August 2004 through February 2007 are available for browsing and keyword searching. The remaining issues of The Flat Hat from 1911 through April 1990 and August 1992 through March 1999 are available for browsing. The missing issues which were not previously microfilmed and thereby not digitized in 2007 will be added in the coming months. The ability to search all digitized issues will also be added in the coming months. The Flat Hat is a rich source of information, announcing events taking place on campus as well as reflecting student opinion. It began publication in October 1911 and, except during the fall of 1918, has been continuously published ever since.
[edit] Flat Hat-Alumni Gazette-William and Mary News Card Catalog
Until the late 1990s, Archives staff indexed The Flat Hat as well as the Alumni Gazette and the William and Mary News by subject and by personal name. This index is available as a card file in the SCRC. All three of these publications are available on microfilm, except for the most recent years. The Flat Hat is also available online, as noted above.
[edit] Other Card Catalogs
The SCRC has other card catalogs available on-site, including a map catalog, a visual arts catalog, and a catalog indexing manuscripts Swem has owned for many years. The Tucker-Coleman collection has its own card catalog.
[edit] Virginia Heritage Project
The Virginia Heritage Database, created by the Virginia Heritage Project Task Force of the Virtual Library of Virginia (VIVA) and funded in part by a grant by the National Endowment for the Humanities, is a union database of finding aids to archival collections in Virginia. Currently, over twenty institutions, including the College of William and Mary, are contributing to the database. The contents of the database represent only a small percentage of each institution's holdings. Follow the link to see a list of the participants and to find out more about the Virginia Heritage Project. William and Mary's holdings in this database include most of our collections with African-American resources and are predominantly Manuscripts Collections.
[edit] Other Databases
Other databases available to users visiting the Earl Gregg Swem Library can be found through Swem Library's homepage.
[edit] Web 2.0 Tools
The SCRC has entered the 21st century! See:
[edit] Subject Guides
Subject guides are under development on an ongoing basis with some guides created for specific courses.
- Early American History
- [Civil War Research]
- [World War II]
- [Genealogy and Local History in the SCRC]
[edit] Collection Summary
Each of these collecting areas is described in further detail at the SCRC's website.
[edit] Manuscript Collections
Focused on Virginia history but with nationally-significant collections, the Manuscript Collections include letters, diaries, journals, scrapbooks, business records, organizational minutes, and other items. From the papers of colonial merchants to antebellum plantation-owners to Civil War soldiers to late 19th-century writers to World War II doctors and nurses to 20th-century politicians to Hollywood actresses, the manuscript collections provide evidence of events great and small and the daily lives of Americans of all backgrounds.
[edit] Rare Books Collection
The Rare Books Collection, with volumes dating from the 15th century to the present, is strong in Virginiana, gardening and natural history, religion, book arts, travel, science, and medicine. Among the SCRC’s unusual holdings are large collections of dog books and versions of The Night Before Christmas.
[edit] University Archives
The University Archives collects material documenting the history of the College of William & Mary from the 1600s to the present. From bursar’s records and other official papers to freshman caps, tapes of choir concerts and student publications, the University Archives has it all. It also collects and preserves faculty and student research and the papers of alumni.
[edit] Warren E. Burger Collection
The Special Collections Research Center is located on the first floor in the east wing of Swem Library. You are invited to stop by and find out how the SCRC’s unique materials can be used to enhance your research. You also may visit the displays of treasures from the collections, including the Warren E. Burger office exhibit. The Warren E. Burger Collection is Swem’s largest manuscript collection, but for privacy reasons will not be available until 2026.
[edit] Usage Discussion
Suggestions for approaching the material:
Housing and getting by for less in the area:
