Special Collections is the library's department for rare, valuable, and fragile materials.
Materials from this department do not check out, but we welcome you in the Special Collections Reading Room in the Main Library lobby, across from the Circulation Desk. We're open by appointment.
Forage is a gorgeous handwritten and embellished scrapbook about the species of grasses and hay suitable for livestock. It was created in 1891 by J.S. Moore as a class project at "A.S.C."
The scrapbook has 56 dried samples of grasses, with stems tied in colored threads. The pages are embellished with calligraphy and drawings of plants and birds.
We have not been able to determine what school J.S. Moore attended. In 1891, MSU's official name was "State Agricultural College," or S.A.C -- not A.S.C. If you choose this artifact for investigation, let us know what you find out!
A young fan created a Michael J. Fox scrapbook in the late 1980s.
A train enthusiast created a photo album with photos of train engines in the late 1950s.
The Allen Benton Morse Papers contain botanical specimens Morse collected in mid-Michigan in the years 1859-1861, and in Tennessee in 1864 while serving in the 21st Michigan Infantry company in the Union Army during the U.S. Civil War.
In 1948, Lansing resident Jerry Mahoney compiled this scrapbook of more than 800 matchbook covers he had collected from all over the United States.
In 1971, Steve Bouwkamp and Craig Brown assembled this scrapbook to document the Vietnam War protest movement and anti-war demonstrations in Washington D.C.
"Grandmother Perry" compiled this charming scrapbook of flower, fruit, vegetable illustrations some time before 1912.
An album of 450 picture postcards from around the world, collected by Robert Bonner Echols from 1905 to 1908.
Photo album from Bloemfontein, South Africa (1910, shown above)
Photo album of Uganda, Tanganyika, Kenya, Iraq, and Nigeria (1916-1926)
Photo album of "Life in Eritrea" (1942)
A young fan compiled a scrapbook about singer John Denver some time in the 1970s.
American serviceman compiled this photo album of his experiences in the Pacific theater of World War II.
The MSU Archives & Historical Collections have a great collection of scrapbooks compiled by MSU students over the generations.
The Archives are located in room 101 of Conrad Hall, on the east side of campus at 888 Wilson Road. Check their reading room hours here.