distinctive collections news

Welcome Back! Fall 2020 Information and the COVID-19 Impact

The Wurzburger Reading Room and the Design and the Arts Special Collections Reading Room welcome everyone back to campus for Fall ’20! After a sudden shift in Spring and a most strange summer break, all of us at the reading rooms want to let you know a few things about ou...

Spanish Villa Shops sketch

Drawn to the Archives: A Look at Architectural Drawings

As with all collections found in archival repositories, architectural-related collections contain records that are retained and preserved because of their enduring importance and research value. Architectural-related collections often originate from a practicing architect or architectural firm and u...

Organ Cactus National Monument

Southwestern Dreams in Kodachrome: Selections from the Herbert and Dorothy McLaughlin Color Photography Collection

An image of Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in Ajo, Arizona (CP MCLC 10840). The Herbert and Dorothy McLaughlin Color Photography and Other Materials collection is part of ASU Library’s Greater Arizona Collection. It features th...

The Nazi Plot Against Hollywood: Archival Evidence in the Jimmy Starr Papers

My name is Matt Messbarger and I’m the Reference Coordinator for ASU Library’s Distinctive Collections. I have a Bachelors in Film Studies from the University of Kansas and a Masters in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where I also earned a Graduat...

Arizona Biltmore Hotel architectural sketch

In the Shadow of Frank Lloyd Wright: The Albert Chase McArthur Collection

An architectural drawing shows plans for the entrance and forecourt of the Arizona Biltmore Hotel (CP SPC 108). If you asked 100 randomly selected people to name an architect, the most popular response would likely be Frank Lloyd Wr...

Seonaid Valiant

The Latin Americana Collection at ASU Library and Distinctive Collections

Seonaid Valiant, Ph.D., MLIS, Curator for Latin American Studies, ASU Library. The Latin Americana Collection at ASU Library draws on many collections in the open stacks and Distinctive Collections, including the Greater Arizona Col...

Renee James

Welcome to the Greater Arizona Collection

Greater Arizona Collection Curator Renee James Hello, my name is Renee D. James, and I am the curator for the Greater Arizona Collection. I hold an M.A. in History and a Certificate in Archival Management and Historical Editing fr...

Dr. Julie Tanaka

Meet Julie Tanaka, Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts

Hello, my name is Julie Tanaka, and I am the new Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts for Distinctive Collections at ASU Library. I arrived in Tempe in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic so I have yet to see the collections in person, but I am looking forward to disco...

“When Did You First Learn About Archives?”: An Introduction to Archives Toolkit

Thank you for stopping by our blog! I am Claudia Willett, Project Archivist with Distinctive Collections at ASU Library. I hold an MLIS in Archives Management and an MA in History from Simmons University. Before coming to ASU in November 2018, I worked as a processing archivist at Boston University....