Library Overview

Within the Ohio State University (OSU) Libraries, special collections are both numerous and diverse: the Byrd Polar Archives, the Cartoon Research Library, the John Glenn Archives, the Hilandar Research Library, the Historic Costume and Textiles Collection, the OSU Archives, Rare Books and Manuscripts/Charvat Collection of American Fiction, and the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute. The Medical Heritage Center, which is part of Ohio State University's Prior Health Sciences Library, is a partner with the Ohio State University Libraries. All of the curators of these special collections, the Head of Special Collections Cataloging, and the Collections Conservator meet regularly as the Special Collections Roundtable, chaired by the Assistant Director for Special Collections, to coordinate policies, programs, and services.

For the special collections of the Ohio State University, collecting strengths include literature, visual and performing arts, history of science, popular culture, religion, Ohio, education, public policy, apparel and textile material culture, history of the health sciences, and voyages and polar exploration. Some of the special collections began from a particular significant donation, and several have close ties to other Ohio State University departments, schools, or colleges. All the Ohio State University Libraries special collections have active exhibit programs (locally and on the Web), support classroom teaching, and encourage research by Ohio State faculty and students as well as visiting scholars and the general public.

Ohio State University
Ohio State University Libraries
1858 Neil Avenue
Columbus, Ohio 43210
http://library.osu.edu/
(614) 688-8447 (t)
(614) 688-4150 (f)