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Archives & Special Collections Development Policy

The holdings of the Joseph Wood Evans Memorial Special Collections and Archives Center have grown as a result of generous donations of rare and unique materials. The Special Collections contain a wide range of formats including printed books, manuscripts, pamphlets, magazines, maps, photographs, audio/visual recordings, and other formats that support the Library's mission to better serve the needs of the Hanover College community, students and faculty. This policy documents major collections and guides collecting in targeted areas. Gifts in many areas are sought and considered. The Archives & Special Collections continues to welcome such gifts in order to enhance the research and intellectual value of our holdings. In addition, we actively seek new initiatives and acquire new collections in anticipation of, or response to, changing academic needs and interests. We are also committed to developing unique and distinctive collections in areas where we have little coverage. Materials may also be transferred from the General Collection in order to preserve their intellectual and research value. Additionally, Special Collections utilizes the Lynn Endowment to further enhance its holdings by purchasing items that would otherwise be unavailable. All materials are non-circulating and are for use only in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room, except under special circumstances with the express permission of the Archives Librarian or the Library Director. Please refer to the policies governing the use of Special Collections, http://library.hanover.edu/aspcpolicies.html.

The Special Collections holdings range from Egyptian papyrus and medieval manuscripts to first editions of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species and the collected works of James Whitcomb Riley. The Joseph Wood Evans Memorial Special Collections and Archives Center collects materials in the following major areas:

• Authors affiliated with Hanover College.
• History (local, Indiana, American and International).
• Literature (regional, American, British and International authors).
• Theology and Philosophy.

Other areas collected:

• First Editions and autographed titles
• Periodicals and Serials
• Reference Works

Special Collections support a variety of disciplines, including: African American Studies, Anthropology, Classics, Economics, Education, English, Fine Arts, Gender Studies, History, Languages, Literature, Natural Sciences, Philosophy, Political Science, Sociology and Theological Studies. The Special Collections also has works of historical importance and research value that have been transferred from the General Collection.

Local History: this includes books, serials, pamphlets and manuscripts about the history of Hanover College, the local community, Jefferson County and the state of Indiana.

American History: the major focus of this collection is biographical, political and regional histories from Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois and Tennessee. Many of these works were part of the Charles Gray Collection, or were transferred from the General Collection. This collection also includes 18^th and 19^th century United States history. One of the strengths in the History Collection is the J. C. Dougherty Civil War Collection that has many signed first editions of autobiographies, biographies, novels, historical atlases, diaries, histories, interviews, memoirs and folios. We also have a complete run of the Congressional Record during the Civil War, the War of the Rebellion (1861-1865).

International History: these ancient and modern works of history from North and South America, Europe, Africa and Asia written in English. Most of these texts have been transferred to Special Collections from the General Collection. Also included are pamphlets, brochures and other materials about international travel.

These publications are comprised of journal articles, books, and reviews written or edited by Hanover College alumni, donors, faculty, staff and students. Among these works are the History of Hanover College: 1827-1927, written by former Hanover College President William Millis; Perceptionalism, written by Dr. Edward J. Hamilton, Hanover College Class of 1853 and Hanover College Faculty member from 1867-1879; the collected works of Judy Moffett, Hanover College Class of 1964, and other scholars associated with Hanover College.

This collection includes 18^th, 19^th and 20^th century works published in southern Indiana or written by local authors such as Edward and George Cary Eggleston, Harlan Hubbard, David Graham Phillips and James Whitcomb Riley. Many of these works are signed first editions.

Included in this collection are 18^th, 19^th and 20^th century works of fiction and nonfiction from authors such as Mark Twain, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville. These holdings also include illustrated folios and children's literature.

The British literature collection contains printed works by authors and illustrators of all periods. Among the most significant are by Alfred Tennyson, Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, John Milton, Samuel Johnson, William Shakespeare and Walter Scott as well as the Dorothy Sheppard Collection that has first editions of the works of Charles Darwin.

These holdings date from 1500 B.C. to the 20^th century, and include Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek, Latin, Chinese, Hebrew, French and German texts. Most of these works date from the 16^th to the 18^th century, with editions of Homer's Iliad and Dante's Inferno as highlights.

Hanover College has one of the largest collections of Presbyterian Church records in Indiana. This Special Collection consists of sermons, diaries, histories and books about the Presbyterian Church (USA). These items also include donated parish records and a collection of works owned by Rev. John Finley Crowe, founder of Hanover College. A list of our processed Presbyterian Church Collections is available at: http://library.hanover.edu/presbyterian.html.

These holdings incorporate Judaism, Protestant, Roman Catholic, and other denominational works including the Holy Bible with editions as early as 1524, and other religious texts including philosophy, doctrines, sermons, and parish histories. Most of these holdings were acquired by donation. The majority of philosophical works in this collection are associated with Theology.

Our holdings in this area include the Edinburgh Review, Harper's Magazine, the Independent, and many other periodicals and magazines in their original format from the 18^th, 19^th and early 20^th century.

This Special Collection houses the 9^th edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica, other historical encyclopedias, dictionaries, atlases, geography, as well as other works transferred from the General Collection or donated to Special Collections.

Donation is the primary mode of acquisition for materials in the Joseph Wood Evans Special Collections and Archives Center. The Duggan Library requires a gift agreement when transferring ownership to the library. Please see the Gift Policy on the Archives and Special Collections' website, http://library.hanover.edu/giftpol.html. The Duggan Library encourages unrestricted gifts, but may accept collections with user restrictions upon the donor's request. Among the generous gift collections received by the Archives and Special Collections are the: the Dorothy Bucks Collections, the J. C. Dougherty Civil War Collection, the Charles Gray Collection, Ronald G. Kleopfer Collection, the Charles J. Lynn Rare Book Collection, the Dorothy Sheppard Collection, and works donated by Charles Wilson, Hanover College Class of 1919. See the Archives and Special Collections website for a list of donated collections: library.hanover.edu/archives.html. If you are interested in donating books or manuscripts to the Duggan Library, contact Ken Gibson, Library Director, at (812) 866-7160.

When materials are not available through donation, acquisitions are made through purchases of books chosen from select booksellers affiliated with the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America (ABAA) or other approved sources. Purchases are funded through the Lynn Endowment, or other donations specifically earmarked for this purpose.

The Lynn Endowment affords the Duggan Library the opportunity to actively acquire first and early editions of primarily 17^th-20^th century American and British Literature and the Lynn Endowment Advisory Group, and ad-hoc group formed by the Library Director and comprised of current faculty, will consider requests for purchases that fit within the general focus of this Endowment. Requested titles will be considered on a case-by-case basis within the context of the title's value to our collections and relative to total available funds. Emphasis will be on items that support current pedagogical needs rather than arbitrarily collecting to a depth in a given area. Items purchased will be in fine to excellent condition in almost all cases, and in most instances first editions will be purchased. In any case, justification of one edition over another should be part of any proposal for purchase using Lynn Endowment funds. The goal is to obtain, at a minimum, at least one work per year using Lynn Endowment funds.

Many libraries actively collect rare books and other documents, but most libraries acquire holdings that over time attain historical, cultural or monetary value that warrant special treatment. Works in any format will be considered for transfer: books, ephemera, folios, manuscripts, pamphlets, periodicals and audio/video recordings, if these items are within the scope of Special Collections. It is important to preserve the information and research value of holdings in the General Collection, and by transferring materials based on the following criteria, characteristics and circumstances, the Duggan Library can better serve patron needs by making these items available in Special Collections. These general criteria include: age, author affiliation, condition, content, edition, intrinsic importance and rarity. These are flexible guidelines and special circumstances may apply. Regarding the review of materials for transfer into Special Collections, it is important to have communication between the Library staff members who are involved with different avenues of the circulating collection and acquisition of gift books. Transfer procedures include: the identification of materials that meet selection criteria, changes in cataloging and the physical relocation to Special Collections. The selection of material may be identified during the routine handling and review for the following library functions: acquisitions, gifts and exchanges, cataloging, preservation, binding, duplication, circulation, inventorying, shelf reading, interlibrary loan, retrospective conversion and weeding. The review of materials to be transferred into Special Collections will include the Library Director, Cataloger and the Archives Librarian. These items will be catalogued and organized according to Library of Congress Classification System and will not circulate or be available through Inter Library Loan.

Age and Imprint: The age of a book has little to do with its research value. Items printed before 1850 should be reviewed for transfer, (pre-wood pulp paper), if within the scope of Special Collections. However, all works printed before 1800, regardless of content, physical condition or other characteristics, should be considered for transfer into Special Collections.

Author Association: If the author is affiliated with Hanover College and Jefferson County, or is of significant note, the work should be transferred. Autographed or first editions should also be transferred.

Condition and Physical Characteristics: If the work is damaged or in such fragile condition that it cannot circulate without further deterioration, it serves little purpose in the General Collection. There are two solutions for these items; weed from the General Collection and replace with a newer edition, or repair and transfer the work to Special Collections. Books published between 1850 and 1950 were printed on wood pulp paper, which is highly acidic and will become brittle unless properly treated. If the paper is brittle, the Library will determine if the work should be transferred to Special Collections or be withdrawn from the Library. Physical size is also an important consideration. It is generally believed that miniature books (measuring 12 centimeters or less) are not designed for circulating collections. Ornately designed works are also more susceptible to damage and should be considered on a case-by-case basis for transfer.

Content and Subject: if the content of a work is indicative of current holdings in Special Collections, focusing on History, Literature, Natural Sciences, Philosophy or Religion, and meets other criteria, it should be transferred.

Importance: Many works have either intellectual value or artifactual value or both. If specific titles are being requested due to continual research value, the rarity of that particular edition or if the work is a significant contribution to a specific field of interest, the work should be transferred to protect the item.

Market Value: Items deemed valuable or irreplaceable may be transferred to Special Collections on a case-by-case basis.

[NOTE: The Duggan Library does not appraise books, see the Gift Policy for details. Donors are required by the IRS to obtain their own evaluations. As an interested party, the Library is not allowed to provide appraisals or inventories. The Library will refer donors to qualified appraisers, and resources that may be used to establish prices of individual items are available in the Library. The Library will acknowledge all gifts by letter].

Rarity: The traditional definition of a rare book is any book with enhanced value and if the demand for the book exceeds the supply, usually due to its importance, scarcity, age, condition, physical characteristics or association. A book without importance or demand has little intrinsic or research value no matter how many copies survive. However, demand can change as research interests evolve. We need to ascertain how many other Libraries have this specific edition by searching in PALNI, OCLC (World Cat) and RLIN. The Duggan Library will also determine if the work was a limited edition printing. If this work is deemed valuable, one question we consider is, "can the work be replaced in the General Collection by a new or more recent edition?"

*These criteria were modified from information on the Duke University Rare Book and Special Collections Library website, http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/, and from the American Library Association: Association of College and Academic Libraries: Rare Books and Manuscripts Section, http://www.rbms.nd.edu/.

For questions or inquiries regarding Special Collections, please contact the Archives Librarian or the Library Director. Visit the Duggan Library website at: library.hanover.edu.

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