Kenneth Spencer Research Library

Have you figured out how call numbers at the Spencer Research Library work yet?

Here are a couple of clues for manuscript collections; see if you can apply them when you review this listing of the front half of 2023’s new finding aids!

• PP = Personal Papers, which are typically collected by the University Archives
• RH = Regional History (the Kansas Collection’s name has gone back and forth over the years)
• MS = manuscript (can be found in call numbers for textual materials in both the Kansas Collection and Special Collections)
• PH = photograph (you will only see this call number designation in the Kansas Collection)
• WL = Wilcox (historically, the Wilcox Collection has been associated with the Kansas Collection, so you’ll typically see “RH WL” together)

It’s a bit like a mathematical formula, if you combine parts of these call numbers. For example, “RH WL MS” means it’s a Wilcox manuscript collection.

Spencer Research Library also typically houses material by size, most often by height for volume call numbers. “A” volumes will be some of the smallest (typically measuring between ten and 15 cm tall), while “H” volumes are frequently stored flat because they are so large (usually over 45 cm tall).

Spencer also uses letters to designate other sizes of materials. A “P” in a call number means that it’s so thin and/or such a small amount of material it’s stored in a single folder or small number of folders, not enough to fill a box or stand upright on a shelf by itself.

So, for another call number formula example: “MS P” means it’s a Special Collections manuscript collection in a single or small number of folders.

Armed with this information, do you think you can figure out which collections belong to which collecting areas and what kind of housing they might have from our listing of newly processed collections?

Oak Ridge Birthday Club collection, 1923-2006 (RH MS 1577)

Winfield Lodge No. 101 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows record book, June 11, 1891-March 31, 1898 (RH MS G89)

“The Kansas Primer,” 1889 (RH MS B79)

George W. Johnson letter, May 3, 1891; postmarked May 24, 1891 (RH MS P999)

Henry Schilb land grant, February 1, 1848 (RH MS Q499)

Kansas glass plate negatives, approximately 1890-1932 (RH PH 568)

Mike Rundle papers, 1981-2010 (RH MS 1571, RH MS Q496, RH MS R512, RH MS R514, RH MS S79, KC AV 127)

Pinckney School scrapbooks, 1947-2014 (bulk 1990-2014) (RH MS Q500)

Elizabeth Szabronski-Carrie A. Hall quilt block research, approximately 1920s-1974 (RH MS 1578)

Personal papers of Mary K. Zimmerman, October 1976-April 2021 (PP 641)

Larry K. Laird papers, 1935-2006 (bulk 1980s-2000s) (RH MS 1579, RH MS Q502, RH MS R517)

Judge Earl E. O’Connor papers, 1941-1998 (RH MS 1581, RH MS Q504, RH MS R519, KC AV 128)

Penny L. Clark papers, 1971-2022 (RH MS 1553, RH MS Q487, KC AV 116)

Personal papers of Don and Del Fambrough, July 4, 1933-September 4, 2011 (PP 644)

Personal papers of Charles Himmelberg, 1895-2005 (bulk 1965-2005) (PP 643)

Personal papers of Harry Nicholas Rice, January 22, 1970-March 4, 2009 (bulk July 1970) (PP 647)

Green Thumb Garden Club records, 1961-2009 (RH MS 1585, RH MS Q506, RH MS R523)

Spencer Chemical Company photographs, 1940s-1950s; 2012 (RH PH 570)

S.D. Jeffers letter, approximately 1860s (RH MS P1000)

William L. Scheirman papers, approximately 1880s-1930s; 1991 (RH MS P1001)

Rolling Prairie Grange No. 1628 photographs, approximately 1916-1919; 2020 (RH PH P2948)

Arthur Moore collection, 1503-1857 not inclusive (bulk 1680s-1730s) (MS 143, MS Q32, MS Q96, MS C245, MS Qa39, MS R30)

Manuscript fragments removed from book bindings, approximately 12th-16th, 19th centuries (MS 20, MS Q103)

Personal papers of Stuart Levine, 1932-2016 (bulk 1958-1986) (PP 646)

Personal papers of Mary Evelyn Nichols Lee, 1949-July 29, 1967 (PP 645)

Eustace Mullins, 1962-1990 (RH WL MS P2)

Robinson-Cofield Commission Company letter, May 9, 1911 (RH MS P1002)

Kansas historical clippings, 1946-1950 (RH MS Q507)

Historical Geography of Lawrence Area tour records, fall 1998 (RH MS P1003)

Charles A. Smith glass plate negatives, approximately 1888-1904 (RH PH 569)

Evan Wright family, 1875-2003, 2022 (bulk 1940-1999) (RH MS 1587, RH MS Q508, RH MS R524, RH MS S82)

Melvin and Maxine Patterson family, March 21, 1952-January 31, 2016 (bulk 1985-2008) (RH MS 1588, RH MS R526, RH MS S82)

Ernst Moritz Arndt collection, 1843-1913; 1948-1961; 2002-2005 (MS 378, MS Q102)

Leslie Carson Wolfe collection, 1937-2023 (RH MS 1590, RH MS R527)

Kansas postcards collection, 1903-2001 not inclusive, mostly undated (RH PH 571)

Judge Julie A. Robinson papers, 1992-2014 (RH MS 1557)

“The Migrations of John B. Kelso,” September 1853-October 1877 (transcribed 2003) (RH MS P1004)

Leslie W. Nesmith scrapbook, 1957-1999 (RH MS 1589)

Kay Jay Laessig photographs, 1941-1945 (RH PH P2849)

A.C. Edwards’ Irish literary correspondence, 1928-1936, 1959-1972 (MS 379, MS Qa48)

Tom Clarke biographies by Seán McGarry, approximately 1943 and 1950 (MS P764)

James A. Healy collection of Irish-related printed materials, approximately 1895-1960s (bulk 1960s) 9MS 380, MS Qa49, MS R31)

George Watters papers, 1922-1924 (MS P765, MS A64)

Personal papers of William (Bill) Mitchell, 1919-2013 (PP 649)

Personal papers of Sandy Mason, 1931-2007 (PP 640)

Marcella Huggard
Manuscripts Processing Coordinator

Check the blog each Friday for a new “That’s Distinctive!” post. I created the series because I genuinely believe there is something in our collections for everyone, whether you’re writing a paper or just want to have a look. “That’s Distinctive!” will provide a more lighthearted glimpse into the diverse and unique materials at Spencer – including items that many people may not realize the library holds. If you have suggested topics for a future item feature or questions about the collections, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page.

Coming up next week is Independence Day (July 4th). Many Fourth of July celebrations involve family get-togethers for quality time, food, and fireworks. In honor of this family time, we are sharing a cookbook out of our collections: 100 Years (1861-1961): Kansas Official Centennial Cook Book, to be exact. The book, published by the American Association of University Women in Manhattan, Kansas, shares favorite recipes of families throughout Kansas in commemoration of the state’s 100th anniversary. While we are just sharing a small portion of the recipes in the book, there are many more in its 101 pages. No matter how you celebrate the upcoming holiday, we hope it involves some good food and quality time.

Tiffany McIntosh
Public Services

Check the blog each Friday for a new “That’s Distinctive!” post. I created the series because I genuinely believe there is something in our collections for everyone, whether you’re writing a paper or just want to have a look. “That’s Distinctive!” will provide a more lighthearted glimpse into the diverse and unique materials at Spencer – including items that many people may not realize the library holds. If you have suggested topics for a future item feature or questions about the collections, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page.

This week in honor of Pride Month we share the Pride Guide from the 1990 Kansas Pride celebrations in Wichita. The guide is a part of the Bruce McKinney papers here at the library. Bruce McKinney began his journey as an LGBT activist during the 1960s. The collection reflects his involvement in the community as an activist and an archivist. He began collecting items related to the LGBT community in his youth and continued through the 1980s. Donated in 2008, the collection holds 142 boxes, 147 oversize boxes, 21 card files, and 13 oversize folders. For those who have never been to the library, that is a massive collection!

After the 1969 Stonewall riots, the first Pride march was held in New York City in 1970. As explained on a Library of Congress webpage about the history of Pride Month, “since 1970 the LGBTQIA+ community has continued to gather together in June to march with Pride and demonstrate for equal rights.” Former President Bill Clinton declared June as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month in the United States in 1999. See the Wikipedia article on Pride Month for more information.

Tiffany McIntosh
Public Services

Inspired by the American Library Association’s “Libraries and Sustainability Virtual Book Club,” hosted during the Fall of 2022, the idea for an exhibit focused on environmental activism was born. We wanted to investigate which local conservation organizations’ materials are held at Spencer Research Library. We combed through boxes of materials from national conservation groups, Kansas chapters, and KU student chapters. Documents from organizations including the Jayhawk and Burroughs Audubon Societies, the Sierra Club of Kansas, and the Kansas Wildlife Federation showcase long-standing conservation efforts in the Lawrence, Kansas, area through task forces related to riparian conservation, water reclamation, the Clean Air Act, bird and buttery fly counts, and more. We also discovered that, within the central theme of local activism, calling community members to action on behalf of local and regional environmental concerns is woven throughout every aspect of the work that these organizations do. From bumper stickers to congressional papers, newsletters to posted fliers, the urgency of action is evident through the various channels of communication these organizations utilize. Not only do these materials document a network of local community efforts, but they also make for a visually appealing display of these important efforts.

Challenges faced during the development of the exhibit were numerous and varied. For example, KU collections reflect that conservation engagement was heightened during the 1970s to the 1990s. This might be an accurate depiction of the context of the environmental movement, or it might reflect the need for further collection development in this area. Other examples were more logistic in nature and required flexibility to pivot around timelines, research processes, and themes of inquiry. The original theme focused specifically on Kansas Audubon Societies, of which there are several, but concerns regarding Audubon himself encouraged us to shift to the broader context of conservation, with the desire to highlight the important work accomplished through environmentally focused organizations and their members. Taken together, the resulting outcomes of facing these challenges have extended the timeline of the exhibition and motivated our desire to showcase the vital work of local environmentalists in Kansas.

The exhibition opened in June and will be on display in Spencer’s North Gallery through July 2023. The selected materials are meant to inspire action and visitors can leave with a postcard they can send to friends and family to urge their participation in local environmental activism by joining a conservation group. Kansas-based organizations featured in the exhibit are invited to attend and share this experience with their members.

We would like to especially thank Pam Chaffee for allowing us to reproduce her photograph “Monarch Tagging with the Jayhawk Audubon Society” (Call Number: RH MS 691, Box 2, Folder 28), which adorns the postcard take-away for the exhibit. We also extend our thanks to Spencer and KU Libraries colleagues who were instrumental in supporting this exhibition: Angela Andres, Phil Cunningham, Molly Herring, Caitlin Klepper, Melissa Mayhew, Meredith Phares, and Nikki Pirch.

Jaime Groetsema Saifi
Special Collections Cataloging Coordinator, Spencer Research Library

Gwen Geiger Wolfe
Science and Engineering Librarian, KU Libraries

Check the blog each Friday for a new “That’s Distinctive!” post. I created the series because I genuinely believe there is something in our collections for everyone, whether you’re writing a paper or just want to have a look. “That’s Distinctive!” will provide a more lighthearted glimpse into the diverse and unique materials at Spencer – including items that many people may not realize the library holds. If you have suggested topics for a future item feature or questions about the collections, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page.

This week on That’s Distinctive! we highlight a book from Special Collections titled Homespun Heroines and Other Women of Distinction by Hallie Q. Brown. The book, published in 1926, highlights notable African American women of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries by, in the words of a Google Books summary, telling the stories of “[enslaved people] and social workers, artists and activists, cake makers and homemakers.” In so doing, it offers “unusual insight into female networks, patterns of voluntary association, work, religion, family life, and Black women’s culture.” The book highlights many notable figures such as Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Dinah Cox, Matilda J. Dunbar, and Martha Payne (mother of Daniel Alexander Payne).

According to Britannica, author Hallie Q. Brown was an

“American educator and elocutionist who pioneered in the movement for African American women’s clubs in the United States. In 1893 Brown was a principal promoter of the organization of the Colored Woman’s League of Washington, D.C., which the next year joined other groups to form the National Association of Colored Women. In 1893 she was appointed professor of elocution at Wilberforce University, but her teaching duties were limited by her frequent and extensive lecture tours, notably in Europe in 1894–99. Her lectures on African American life in the United States and on temperance were especially popular in Great Britain, where she appeared twice before Queen Victoria. She was a speaker at the 1895 convention of the World’s Woman’s Christian Temperance Union in London and a representative of the United States at the International Congress of Women there in 1899. Browns other works include Bits and Odds: A Choice Selection of Recitations (1880) and First Lessons in Public Speaking (1920).”

Homespun Heroines and Other Women of Distinction is a part of the Howey Collection within Special Collections at Spencer Research Library. The Howey Collection houses many books that originate from the Gerritsen Collection. Spencer’s copy of this volume originally came from the library of physician and women’s activist Aletta Jacobs (1854-1929) and her husband C. V. Gerritsen, who collected books, pamphlets, and other materials on women’s issues. Acquired by the John Crerar Library of Chicago in 1903, the Gerritsen collection was purchased with other Crerar Library materials by the University of Kansas in 1954. The collection was microfilmed and is now available digitally through subscription to libraries worldwide.

A digital copy of the book can be found at Documenting the American South, or the library’s physical copy can be viewed in the Reading Room, Monday through Friday between 10am and 4pm.

Tiffany McIntosh
Public Services