Deirdre Joyce, University Archivist, informs us of a new event and exhibit at the library in honor of American Archives Month:

The University Archives and Department of Special Collections (UASC) at The University of Texas at Tyler will be hosting a panel discussion entitled “Honk if You Like Ike: American Political Campaigning in the Twentieth Century” on October 14, 2009 at 6:00pm.  The event will be held on the fourth floor of the Robert R. Muntz Library and will feature a discussion that complements the UASC’s most recent acquisition, the Tim Anthony Jackson Collection of Presidential Campaign Memorabilia. The discussion is being held in conjunction with American Archives Month, which takes place during the entire month of October.

The panel will feature three UT Tyler faculty members:  Dr. Courtney Cullison (Asst. Professor, Political Science), Dr. Marsha Matthews (Asst. Professor, Communication), and Dr. James Newsom (Lecturer, History) each of whom will discuss the nature of American political campaigns and the salient points of analysis that political ephemera lend to their respective disciplines.  The discussion will be moderated by Vanessa Curry, advisor to UT Tyler’s student newspaper, the Patriot Talon. Numerous items of political ephemera from the collection will be on display, including campaign buttons dating back to President William J. McKinley, bumper stickers dating from the 1950s, campaign literature for both winning and losing candidates, and political novelty items, including an actual voting booth from the disputed Florida presidential election in 2000.

In addition to materials from the Tim Anthony Jackson Collection, visitors to the library will also be able to view records and ephemera from other manuscript collections that highlight the political campaign theme.  Pieces from the Sarah McClendon papers, the Bill Ratliff papers, the William M. Steger papers, the E.F. Jarrel papers and the University Archives will be on display during the entire month of October in locations throughout the library.

American Archives Month is a collaborative effort by professional organizations and repositories around the nation to highlight the importance of records of enduring value. Archivists are professionals who assess, collect, organize, preserve, maintain control of, and provide access to information that has lasting value, and they help people find and understand the information they need in those records.

The University Archives and Department of Special Collections (UASC), located on the ground floor of the Robert R. Muntz Library, handles materials of historical and/or archival interest to The University of Texas at Tyler and the surrounding community.

Over the course of summer 2009, the University Archives and Special Collections will be open during the following times:

Monday: 1:00pm-5:00pm

Tuesday: 1:00pm-5:00pm

Wednesday: 1:00pm-5:00pm

Please note that the University Archives and Special Collections will continue to be available by appointment as well. For appointments or additional information about the UASC, you can call 903-565-5849 or 903-565-5748.

In recognition of Archives Month (October), the University Archives and Department of Special Collections (UASC) at the Robert R. Muntz Library is pleased to present an exhibit on the history of The University of Texas at Tyler.  Chartered in 1971 as Tyler State College (an upper-level baccalaureate and master’s level institution),  The University of Texas at Tyler now offers undergraduate education at all levels and post-graduate studies at both the master’s and doctoral level. The six panels of the exhibit trace the growth of the University as it has moved through its various iterations as an institution for higher education in East Texas.  For more information on the history of the University, please visit the University Archives and Department of Special Collections.

This exhibit was created by University Archives Assistant, Brandy Monts, under the supervision of the University Archivist, Déirdre Joyce.  The UT-Tyler Office of Alumni Affairs assisted the Robert R. Muntz Library in the production of this display. Patrons may view the exhibit in the hallway outside the UASC; it will be displayed indefinitely.

Students, faculty, staff, and university guests are all invited to come see a new exhibit located in the University Archives and Special Collections (UASC) Reading Room (Room 107) at The University of Texas at Tyler. “The Power of Books: Selections from the Special Collections at UT Tyler” features some of the volumes held by the department, including such rare items as a 17th Century Colonial Mexican illuminated manuscript, an 18th Century German “Elector Bible” and a velvet-bound, lavishly-illustrated 19th Century edition of Milton’s Paradise Lost.  This exhibit will be open to the public through September 12.

-Deirdre Joyce, University Archivist and Special Collections Librarian

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