The development of the rare book and manuscript collections has occurred primarily because of the generosity of private citizens, and further growth depends upon a continuation and widening of that support.

Persons who contribute money, books or manuscripts become partners in the University's mission to educate students and advance scholarship, but they also receive more direct benefits. For example, those who donate cherished family collections can be assured that their rare books or manuscripts will be protected to a far greater degree than is usually possible in any home, and they will have created permanent memorials to themselves or their ancestors.

While donations of rare books in all subjects are welcomed, we especially solicit books on subjects in which we have already established modest strengths. These are American studies, including literature, history, art and architecture, children's books, the history of North and South Carolina, and English literature with a concentration on the drama.

In addition to the potential for developing the Rare Book Collection, we have an excellent opportunity to establish a major research center for the study of the Metrolina region. This goal can be achieved only with the assistance of local citizens committed to the preservation of the unpublished history of their communities.

Among the kinds of material that will provide sources for researchers are letters, diaries, legal and financial records, personal reminiscences, photographs, architectural drawings, and memorabilia. These materials may include the papers of individuals long dead or with many productive years ahead of them, of families large and small, influential and unknown, and of organizations, including businesses, churches, neighborhood groups, political parties, and women's organizations from the DAR to NOW. Subjects may range from politics to routine family matters and from literature to visual and aural documentation of the past.

Large collections created over long periods of time and dealing with a variety of activities are important but so, too, are smaller collections and single documents.

The creators of these materials need not have been the elite of their time, as historians are also interested in the lives of average people and minorities. The most significant consideration is that the material add details to our knowledge of the past that otherwise might not be preserved and that are necessary to complete the historical records.

To talk to someone about donating materials, please contact Bob McInnes, Manuscripts Librarian, or Katie McCormick, Assistant University Librarian for Special Collections.