All items from the Special Collections are included in the Library's online catalog at http://voyager.hws.edu. For additional information, please contact a Reference Librarian at (315) 781-3552.
Books given to the library by Rev. Benjamin Hale, president of Hobart College 1836-1858.
Located in the Rare Book Room.
Featured Selection:
A year in the life of a Shinto shrine
By John K. Nelson
The Perry Asia Library was established in the spring of 2003 with the donation of 5,000 volumes by Mark Selden, Bartle Professor of Sociology and History at Binghamton University and Professorial Associate in the East Asia Program at Cornell University. Mr. Selden donated works from his personal collection in honor of William Smith alumna Elizabeth J. Perry ’69, Henry Rosovsky Professor of Government at Harvard University. The Collection is now at 10,000 volumes and continues to grow. The Collection highlights the History, Society and Literature of East Asian countries including China, Japan, Korea, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Tibet, Nepal, and the Philippines. Located on the second floor of the Library.
Featured Selection:
William Smith College
Campus view book, ca. 1910
The Geneva Collection celebrates the history of Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Geneva, NY and the Finger Lakes Region. This collection includes manuscripts, programs, photographs, scrapbooks, letters. etc. that illuminate the history of the Colleges. It also includes a book collection that dates from 1790 and places a particular emphasis on works by Faculty and Alumni. The Baccalaureate Essays, Honor Theses, and the Master of Arts in Teaching Theses of Hobart and William Smith Students are also included in the Geneva Collection. Available through the archives -- please contact the archivist for more information..
A collection of more than two hundred books from the Library of John Milton Potter, President of Hobart and William Smith Colleges from 1942-1947. Publication dates range from 1537 to 1943. Subjects include history, Christianity, law, political science, among others. Languages include English, Latin, French, and German. Located in the Rare Book Room.
Featured Selection:
Sources of Chinese tradition
Compiled by William Theodore De Bary
and Irene Bloom
The Jansen Collection was made possible by the generosity of Mrs. Jean Jansen who donated the books of her late husband Marius Jansen, Emeritus Professor of Japanese History at Princeton University. The Collection contains 1,700 volumes that explore the History, Language and Literature, Religion, and the Social Sciences of East Asian countries. Located on the second floor of the Library.
Featured Selection:
Haydn and his world
Edited by Elaine R. Sisman
The Personal Collection of Frank O'Laughlin, Professor in the Department of History, 1949-1999, contains over 8,500 volumes on a wide variety of subjects. This collection, fondly referred to as "Frank's Books", was made possible by Mara O'Laughlin ('66), Terrence L. Martin ('66), Jamer C. Spira ('64), Herbert J. Stern ('58), and the Herman Goldman Foundation. Located on the second floor of the Library.
A collection of approximately 5000 rare books published between 1493-2005 These books have value due to age, scarcity, condition, or content of merit. Subjects covered are wide ranging with an emphasis on classical literature, Christianity, and the Episcopal Church. Languages include English, Latin, French, Greek, Italian and Dutch. The oldest is a book of sermons in Latin by Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, 1493.