Special Collections and Binghamton University Archives
Contents
- About Special Collections and Binghamton University Archives
- Profile of the Collections
- Use of the Collections
- Bibliographic Access
- Location of the Collections
- Finding Aids
About Special Collections and Binghamton University Archives
Special Collections and Binghamton University Archives are located on the second floor north of the Glenn G. Bartle Library.
Access to Special Collections is Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m during the Fall and Spring semesters. Hours may vary during intersessions and in the summer. It is often advisable to contact Special Collections and discuss requests in advance so that materials will be ready when you arrive. Phone (607) 777-4844 or e-mail Special Collections.
Profile of the Collections
Materials are acquired through both donation and purchase. Selection of materials to be added to Special Collections is made on the basis of their age, uniqueness or rarity, provenance, format, and subject. The book collection consists primarily of North American editions published prior to 1850, British imprints prior to 1800, and European imprints prior to 1750. In addition, numbered limited editions, examples of fine printing or binding, editions with fine or unusual illustrations, local imprints and books relating to local history are collected. Unique archival materials and manuscripts are also kept in Special Collections. Finally, Special Collections houses certain non-paper materials: selected sound recordings, films, slides, and realia.
Collections include:
- Rare Books and Printed Materials
- Binghamton University and Faculty Archives
- The Edwin A. Link and Marion Clayton Link Collections
- Local History Resources
- Film Collections
- Frances R. Conole Archive of Recorded Sound
- Manuscript Collections
Use of the Collections
The purpose of Special Collections is to provide controlled access and maximum protection for the University's archives and rare materials. To be admitted to Special Collections, all patrons must provide satisfactory identification (e.g., current university or school ID or driver's license) and agree to abide by the posted rules and regulations.
Most materials in Special Collections are non-circulating. Materials are paged for patrons by Special Collections staff and used in the Special Collections reading room only. Staff will photocopy materials for patrons upon request (unless there are restrictions against copying). There is a per-page charge, to be paid in cash or by check at the time copies are made.
Bibliographic Access
The majority of books, manuscripts, and archival materials in Special Collections are now cataloged online. Some of the larger collections, notably the Reinhardt, the Haggerty, and the Conole collections, are still in the process of being cataloged and not completely accessible online. Printed finding aids, which provide more detailed information than the online archival catalog records, are available for many of the archive and manuscript collections.
Location of the Collections
The following Special Collections materials are located in the Library Annex@Conklin and must be paged:
- The Conole Archive of Recorded Sounded (both recordings and books)
- Originals of Masters theses and Ph.D. dissertations
Please note that:
- The 24-hour turn around time which applies to paging items from the circulating collections cannot be guaranteed for Special Collections. Patrons may have to wait several days for Special Collections items paged from the Annex.
- These Special Collections materials do not circulate. Original of theses and dissertations must be used in Special Collections. Recordings must be listened to in the Special Collections Reading Room.