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» Mission » Access & Use » Collections Overview » University Records » Photographs & Prints » Audiovisual Materials » Research Opportunities » Online Exhibits » Collections Policy for University Records |
 University Archives is located in the John Hay Library. For information contact archives@brown.edu. |
Mission:
The Brown University Archives collects, preserves and makes available
the official records of Brown University , the papers of Brown's administrators,
faculty and alumni, and the records of related student, alumni and
faculty organizations. University Archives provides reference services
to the general public, to faculty, students and alumni of Brown University
, and to departments and staff at Brown. The collections held by University
Archives document the history of Brown University from its beginnings
in the 1760s, and constitute the institutional memory of the University.
SCOPE: The collections of the Brown University
Archives document the intellectual, social and cultural
life of the University. The Archives actively solicits
materials pertaining to the ordinary routines of campus
life, as well as special events of all kinds, that contribute
to an understanding of the university's structure and its
history.
Access and Use:
You are invited to use the Archives by signing the visitor's register
and providing a Brown identification card or other positive identification.
There are no coats, purses, briefcases, or backpacks allowed in the Archives Reading Room. Secure lockers for coats and personal
property are available in the Reader's Services area on the main floor of the John Hay Library. There is no food or water allowed in
the Archives reading room.
Collections Overview:
Directly inside the doors is a public browsing area with tables
for readers. On the shelves you will see published histories
of Brown, including Walter Bronson's "History of Brown University,
1764 - 1914"; Reuben Guild's "Life, Times, and Correspondence
of James Manning" ... (1864) and his "Early History of Brown
University" ... (1897); Anne T. Weeden's "The Women's College
in Brown University" ... (1912); and Grace Hawk's "Pembroke
College in Brown University; The First Seventy- five Years" (1966).
Also in this area you will find yearbooks, annual catalogs,
and bound copies of the "Brown Daily Herald" (1891 - present);
the "Brown Alumni Monthly" (1900 - present); the "Pembroke
Alumna" (1928 - 1970); and the "Brunonian" (a student literary
publication which also contained campus and alumni news, 1868
- 1917). There is also an indexed "news-bank" of University
news releases from 1949 to the present. The Encyclopedia
Brunoniana (1993) includes a wealth of information about
the history of Brown University, its faculty, graduates, buildings,
and traditions.
Adjacent are card catalogs of books and theses in the
Archives. Josiah includes
records for books, theses, and approximat ely 80 manuscript
collections in the Archives. Most of the rest of the material
in the Archives can be found through the card catalogs
of finding aids. These include registers of manuscript
collections, office files, graphics, and audio-visual
material. There are also guides to Archives subject files
and sport and dramatic collections, as well as indexes
to University publications. In addition, there is a searchable
database of Brown
Theses and dissertations, organized by academic department.
The Archives staff can assist you in finding everything
you always wanted to know about Brown.
University Records:
The earliest records of the University are a group
of original papers entitled "Miscellaneous Papers, 1763
- 1804", (that being their title when they were assembled
in scrapbooks many years ago), which document the founding
of Rhode Island College, the building of University Hall,
its occupation during the Revolutionary War, the visit
of George Washington, and Nicholas Brown's donation of
$5,000, which changed the name of the college and established
the first endowed professorship. Other early records are
the Minutes of the Corporation beginning in 1764, and
Minutes of the Faculty beginning in 1829. Student records
of admission, grades, and bills were kept in ledgers beginning
in 1827.In the manuscript collection are historical papers
of the Corporation, beginning in 1763 when the college
was only an idea.
The records of Rhode
Island College have now been digitized as part of the Brown
Archival and Manuscript Collections Online (BAMCO) project.
Papers of Brown Alumni and Faculty:
Collections of the Brown University Archives include the
personal papers of faculty and alumni dating back to the
founding of the College in 1764. Among
these are the correspondence of James Manning, first president of the College,
and architectural drawings of Thomas Alexander Tefft (Class of 1851), both
of which have now been digitized as part of the BAMCO project (http://dl.lib.brown.edu/bamco/). There
are also papers of other presidents and University officers, as well as minutes
of 19th and 20th century student societies, student diaries, letters, essays,
and lecture notes. The papers of distinguished Brown scholars, such as botanist
William W. Bailey, physicist Carl Barus, mathematician R.G.D. Richardson,
and astronomer Winslow Upton are found here. A detailed Guide to manuscripts
in the University Archives collection is available on site.
University
Archives actively collects papers of Brown faculty and alumni that are of
enduring historical value.
Photographs and Prints:
A collection of over 46,000 photographs in file drawers near the reading
area illustrates campus scenes, buildings, groups, events, student activities,
and individual faculty members, students, and alumni. Other photographs
may be found in enormous leather-bound class albums owned by graduates
from 1857 to 1904. There are about 100 of these albums containing photographs
of seniors, buildings, and student groups. The Robinson Collection of athletics
depicts 125 years of Brown athletics. The earliest photograph is a daguerreotype
taken of the class of 1847 as seniors. There are also drawings, etchings,
and cartoons, and several hundred glass slides of campus scenes around
the turn of the century.
See the online exhibition Remembering
Brown Sports: Items from the Edward North Robinson Collection of Brown Athletics.
Audio/visual
Materials:
The Archives have over 1,000 motion picture films of academic
celebrations, Brown television programs, and athletic events,
and about 500 tape recordings of speeches, lectures, and performances.