Click to enlarge.

Library patrons have become accustomed to finding information online, be it through the online catalog, full text databases, electronic books and journals, or Web sites. In Special Collections, however, seeking information proves to be much more complex, and many of our unique resources are not available online. In fact, for most of our manuscript collections patrons must use the card catalog or speak with the Special Collections Librarian to discover what treasures can be found. This is true at most academic institutions, but change is on the horizon. In the same way that online catalogs have replaced the card catalog, archives and special collections have been developing new methods to access primary resources.

Finding aids for archival collections are now being created in EAD (Encoded Archival Description), which produces a searchable record, detailing folder by folder what is held in each box of the collection. The first example of this at the Claremont Colleges is the finding aid for the Ellen Browning Scripps papers. This, as well as all finding aids that are being developed, will be hosted on the Online Archive of California (http://www.oac.cdlib.org), a core component of the California Digital Library, which brings together primary resources from libraries, museums, archives, and other institutions from across the state.

Digitization projects are another exciting new development in the Libraries' Special Collections. The first completed project is the Matrimonial Investigation Records of the San Gabriel Mission, a series of investigations that took place from 1788-1861, consisting of notarized interviews with couples requesting marriage in the Roman Catholic Church. Another digital collection to be launched later this semester are the Wheeler Scrapbooks, which consist of newspaper clippings, photographs, and other Claremont ephemera from the 1880s to the 1940s. Over the years this collection has received heavy use by students for research projects, as well as by historians and scholars interested in southern California history. Both of these collections in digital form allow the user to browse page by page, as if examining the original. By providing online access to the materials many individuals can use the collections at once and the typically fragile originals are being spared any harm that occurs through handling.

With online access to finding aids and digital collections, primary resources are now easier than ever to incorporate into the curriculum. Special Collections welcomes input and ideas for future digitization projects that faculty feel would benefit students and scholars. Please contact Special Collections at (909) 607-3977 or spcoll@libraries.claremont.edu.

Kelley Wolfe, Denison Library
kelley.wolfe@libraries.claremont.edu