University of Rochester: Rare Books, Special Collections and Preservation

University of Rochester: Rare Books, Special Collections and Preservation

Rush Rhees Library
Second Floor, Room 225
755 Library Rd.
Rochester, NY 14627, United States
The Department of Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation at the University of Rochester is located in Rush Rhees Library. Our collections span a range of subjects and time periods. They include manuscripts, audio and visual material, books and serials, letters, diaries, photographs, ephemera, personal and business records, architectural drawings, maps, and more.

Collection Sampling

Theodore Medad Pomeroy papers, 1861-1868

The collection consists of letters from constituents on such matters as postmasterships and other political appointments, topics related to the Civil War, requests for government documents, political party matters, etc. This is not his total incoming correspondence and it is not known how representative it is. There is a small amount of family correspondence to Pomeroy and a small amount of correspondence not to Pomeroy which came with the Papers. Its original relationship, if any, to the Pomeroy Papers is not known.

Collection ID: D.36

Michael Sze photograph collection

This collection is comprised of 7 boxes of photographs documenting travel to Asia, North Africa, Europe, the South Pacific, and Hawaii. Included in the collection are nine glass plate negatives, twelve stereocards, numerous albumen prints, and three Edward Curtis photogravures.

Collection ID: D.489

Palmyra (N.Y.) photograph collection, circa 1890-1910

The collection consists of 312 glass plate negatives The photographs are thought to have been made by a member of the Garlock family in the small upstate New York town of Palmyra. The images were taken in the period from 1890 to 1910, a time marked by great economic growth and just prior to America's growing involvement in world affairs. We were still a rural nation - farms and small towns having the majority of the population.

Collection ID: D.251

Barbara Duncan papers, 1878-1955

The papers include correspondence to her mother, Mrs. Charles Duncan, while she was abroad on purchasing trips for the Sibley Music Library. Also included are essays concerning: her European buying trips; Philip Hale, the music critic; Anthony Philip Heinrich, the American composer; a critique of Irving Babbitt's article "New Laokoon: An Essay on the Confusion of the Arts"; and French melodrama.

Collection ID: A.D19

Anne (St. John) Lee Wilmot, Countess of Rochester papers, 1685-1686

The Papers consist of 16 letters written by the Countess of Rochester to her grandson Edward Henry Lee, 1st Earl of Lichfield, five letters to his wife Lady Charlotte (Fitzroy) Lee, Countess of Lichfield, and one to his mother Elizabeth (Pope) Lee Bertie, Countess of Lindsey. Also in the collection is a letter to the Countess from James Bertie, 1st Earl of Abingdon, and a letter to her from a "Cosen Bowyer".

Collection ID: D.29

Lee McCanne scrapbooks, 1910-1942

The Lee McCanne Scrapbooks include four scrapbook volumes compiled by Lee McCanne and cover the time period 1910-1942. The scrapbooks contain newspaper clippings, articles from magazines and trade journals, correspondence, programs, and some photographs. Much of it concerns the telephone industry in general and the Stromberg-Carlson Telephone Manufacturing Company specifically.

Collection ID: D.355

Julius J. Loos papers, 1898-1993

The collection includes a 79-page typescript reminiscence, entitled "Gratification!" which recounts his work as Secretary of the Typographical Union, and various related drafts; a small amount of financial and personal correspondence; and several biographical newspaper articles.

Collection ID: D.243

Rossiter Johnson papers, circa 1886-1931

This collection consists of Rossiter Johnson's manuscript memoirs, "The Gossip of a Lifetime," part 1 and part 2. The manuscript discussed Johnson's early life and experiences in Rochester, New York along with his later life in New York City including his jobs, his associations with people, and his literary career and works. The collection also contains letters of amendments, and a contract between Johnson, Oscar Fay Adams, and Ticknor and Company for publishing.

Collection ID: D.164

George Michael Rogers papers, 1916-1918

This collection consists of letters written by George Michael Rogers, 1891-1953, a native of Rochester, New York, to his family in Rochester, while serving in the Army before and during World War I. Most of the letters are written to his sisters, Antoinette, Cecilia, and Margaret Rogers, and to his mother, Mrs. Hugh Rogers, of 148 Brooks Avenue. The correspondence in the collection begins on June 26, 1916, and continues regularly until December 16, 1918, with the exception of a gap in the correspondence from January through August, 1917. The letters reveal his feelings toward Army life, descriptions of camp life and meals, inquiries about friends, and experiences while serving in the 2nd Ambulance Company. During the period of his correspondence, he was successively stationed in Pharr, Texas; Spartanburg, South Carolina; Newport News, Virginia, and overseas in France from June 30, 1918 to March 11, 1919.

Collection ID: D.41

Helen Power papers, circa 1972-1975

The Helen Power Papers are divided into five series: General Board of Regents Business, Committee Meetings and Conferences, Proposals, Reports, Published and Printed Materials. The series General Board of Regents Business contains correspondence written to and from Power, as well as to other members of the Board, materials related to issue campaigns and addresses made to the Board as well as other community groups. The second series, Committee Meetings and Conferences includes materials from weekly and monthly meetings held between 1973 and 1975. The third series includes proposals and recommendations made by and to the Board. Similarly, the fourth series, Reports contains drafts and final versions of documents submitted for the Board's approval. The final series is comprised of newsletters published and sent to Power and others during the early 1970s, as well as newspaper articles and other printed materials related to education.

Collection ID: D.119