Collins Unbound

Because you probably don’t. While the archives is home to a whole array of historical and cultural materials, as well as the missives, meeting minutes, and miscellany that document the entire history of the University from 1888 to the present day, we also have an extensive collection of photos, most taken by University photographers.

And boy do we have a lot of them. Photos, that is, not photographers.

Three full filing cabinets, another cabinet as tall as I am and three times as wide for the stuff that’s too big to put anywhere else, a few drawers full of photos that were rolled up 50 years ago and are (almost) too delicate to unroll, and that’s not even counting pictures of people and events published in newspapers and other printed materials kept in their own boxes and folders for a hundred different things, people, and places.

We’ve got portraits of every faculty member ever, aerial photos of campus spanning from the 1920s to present day, pictures of students studying, lounging, and living from the whole of the history of the University, campus events, sports, drama, and music, and on top of it all is the considerable documentation of the construction of nearly all the buildings on campus. If you ever wanted proof that the Thompson Hall clock tower did not (as some claim) spontaneously appear overnight during an unseasonable thunderstorm in 1973, we’ve got the court admissible evidence right here.

So if you’re ever in the mood for it, check out the Archives & Special collections during our open hours (Wednesdays 1 to 7 pm and Thursdays 9 to 11:30 am), and make your own fantastic, photographic discoveries about the history of the University.

By Zebediah Howell

We hope you enjoy the day!

Introducing the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, John Mason Brown remarks on how Robert Louis Stevenson came to write the famous book: “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was dream-born… but in its case interrupted in the very act of dreaming. Born of a dream? No. Of a nightmare, of course.” Stevenson apparently took ill in Bournemoth, England, cried out in his sleep, remarked, “I dreamed a fine bogey tale,” and proceeded to write out the book in three days. Once published, the book gained much prestige as a seminal “psychological thriller” that explored the many contradictions and convergent identities within human nature.

Collins Library’s Shelmidine Room houses a 1952 rare edition of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, which was first published in 1886. Bound in a marbled paper hard cover, the writing in this edition is punctuated by charcoal illustrations highlighting some of the more gruesome or odd moments in the book. One, towards the beginning of the story, shows Mr. Hyde trampling a young girl, the first public showing of his evil nature. The illustrations beautifully transition between the different moods and events of the book. To find more rare editions such as this, visit Archives & Special Collections during our open hours on Wednesdays 1 – 7 pm, or Thursdays 9 – 11:30 am!

By Maya Steinborn

Have you looked at our Tumblr recently?  We are posting fun finds and fabulous images from our rare book, manuscript, and university archives collections every few days!  Stop by, check them out, and tell us what you’d like to see…