Find Collections
KU Libraries Catalog
You can find information about the majority of Spencer Research Library’s holdings by searching the KU Libraries online catalog.
Follow these steps to limit your search results to just the materials in Spencer Research Library:
- Go to the Libraries catalog and select "Advanced Search" to the right of the search box. If you're starting on the Libraries homepage, you can get to the online catalog by selecting “Advanced Search” under the main search box.
- At the top of the screen, find “Search for” and select “Books and more.”
- Enter your search term(s) and select “Search.”
- From the results, find “Tweak my results” on the right. Scroll down to the “KU Libraries” section and select Spencer.
- The default setting in the catalog is to sort results by relevance. Consider re-sorting your results in chronological order using the "Sort by" drop-down menu under "Tweak my results." This would, for example, bring primary sources about the American Civil War (written during and just after the conflict) to the beginning of your results list and secondary sources (written after the conflict up to the present) to the end of the results list.
- Select an item's title to see the catalog record, which contains more information about that particular resource.
Finding Aids
Search finding aids that describe archival collections, which generally contain unpublished materials such as letters, diaries, drafts of literary works, financial records, meeting minutes, reports, scrapbooks, memorabilia, photographs, and audiovisual materials. A finding aid is a document created by archivists to aid researchers in navigating an archival collection and finding information about subjects, people, places, and events within it.
Subject Guides (LibGuides)
Spencer Librarians have created a number of subject guides (also known as LibGuides) to aid you in finding resources by subject or topic.
Online Exhibitions
Some of these exhibits are digitized versions of previous physical exhibits at Spencer Research Library. Others have been created solely as digital exhibits. All share highlights from Spencer's collections.
"Inside Spencer: The KSRL Blog"
Spencer librarians and student assistants contribute weekly articles to the blog. Entries highlight materials from across Spencer's collecting areas, share library updates, provide behind-the-scenes looks at projects undertaken by staff members, and more. The blog is searchable, or you can browse by category.
Digital Collections
KU Libraries Digital Collections provide free, public access to thousands of objects digitized from across Spencer's holdings, including photographs, documents, and audiovisual materials.
Digital Collections
Bolton Company Letters
Letters from an English merchant and his company to his London associates.
Central American Broadsides
Broadsides dating from the 1820s to 1922, primarily Guatemalan, with a smaller number from Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Nicaragua.
City Moon Newspaper
A newspaper published in Lawrence, Kansas, by City Moon Press between 1973 and 1985.
Digital Scriptorium
A growing consortium of American institutions with collections of medieval and Renaissance manuscripts.
Endacott Society Oral History Collection
Audio recordings and transcripts created by the Endacott Society, whose members are retired KU faculty, staff, and spouses.
Feminist Perspective Radio Program
Recordings of a radio program that was produced by the KU Women's Resource and Career Center and aired in the first half of the 1970s.
Harambee
The first newsletter of the Black Student Union at the University of Kansas, published between 1969 and 1970.
James William Bee Journals
Field journals kept by Bee, a professor of zoology and curator of mammalogy at KU, from 1927 to 1995.
Jesuatti Book of Remedies
A volume compiled by Friar Giovanni Andrea of the Order of the Jesuati Friars of Saint Jerome in Lucca, Italy in 1562.
John Gould Ornithological Collection
Large-format bird books published by John Gould (1804-1881) and pre-publication artwork produced by Gould and his artists.
John S. and Dan Dillon Casement Collection
Letters and photographs of John S. and Dan Dillon Casement while they were engaged in construction in Central America.
Joseph Pennell Photography Collection
Photographs taken in and around Junction City and Fort Riley, Kansas, from the early 1890s to the early 1920s.
Kansas Collection
Materials describing and promoting the settlement of Kansas and the American West in mid 1800s, including the Territorial period.
Kansas Collection Photographs
A sample of images from the hundreds of thousands of historical photographs in the Kansas Collection.
Kansas Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps
Detailed maps of Kansas cities and towns from the late 1800s and early 1900s, created by the Sanborn Map Company of Pehlham, New York.
KU Natural History Museum Photographs
Photographs of the panorama created by KU professor Lewis Lindsay Dyche at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, among other topics.
KU ScholarWorks: Archives Online
Material from University Archives in the digital repository of the University of Kansas.
Leon K. Hughes Photography Collection
A chronicle of African American family and community life in Wichita, Kansas, from the late 1940s through the 1970s.
Mary Huntoon Artwork
A sample of original etchings and artwork by Kansas artist and art therapist Mary Huntoon (1896-1970).
Mediterranean Travel and Trade, 1300-1800
A multinational, multilingual collection of contemporary works on Mediterranean travel and trade.
Nicodemus Historical Society Collection
Materials documenting the history and legacy of Nicodemus, Kansas, a town founded in 1877 by African Americans who migrated from the southern U.S.
Phog Allen Papers
Correspondence and related materials from the basketball coach's office at KU when Forrest C. "Phog" Allen held the position.
Public Notice Newsletter
A newsletter published by the Community Mercantile Food Cooperative in Lawrence, Kansas, from 1974 to 1981.
Raymond A. Goetz Oral History Collection
Interviews with former colleagues and students of KU Law School professor and labor arbitrator Raymond A. Goetz (1922-2000).
Robert B. Riss Collection
Writings by authors, artists, American presidents, nobility, royalty, and other notable persons from the U. S., the British Isles, and Continental Europe.
Rossetti Family Collection
Correspondence of the Rossetti family, a British family whose members influenced art and literature during the second half of the 19th century.
Simons Family Papers
Materials from the Simons family of Kansas; most relate to W.C. Simons, founder of the Lawrence Journal-World newspaper of Lawrence, Kansas.
Special Collections
Manuscript and print volumes, many from the Middle Ages, Renaissance, and Early Modern period.
Territorial Kansas Online
A virtual repository for the history of Territorial Kansas containing documents from Spencer and the Kansas State Historical Society.
University Archives Photographs
A sample of historical images from the one million photographic items in University Archives.
University Archives Records
Selected print materials including the first volume of Board of Regents meeting minutes and documents related to basketball.
University Archives Videos
Historic moving images that capture a wide range of KU history including sporting events, university celebrations, and student activities.
Web Archives
An archive of official University of Kansas websites and websites captured in the Kansas Collection.
World War I Letters
Two collections of letters written by soldiers: Kansan Milo H. Main and Wisconsin native Forrest W. Bassett, who was stationed at Fort Leavenworth.
World War II: The African American Experience
Audio recorded interviews that document the experiences of African American World War II veterans.