RPM visits Special Collections

On Thursday, September 18, the Research and Prospect Management (RPM) team stepped back in time on a tour of UGA’s Special Collections Library. After a brief introduction from Lee Snelling, Senior Director of Development for UGA Libraries, University Press, and the Georgia Review, we headed upstairs to a rotunda displaying the rich history of UGA’s swim and dive team. Complete with swim caps and parkas, this exhibit boasted the team’s numerous successes over the years – including Bulldog appearances at the Olympics! According to Lee, a different athletics program is recognized every month, thanks to generous collectors from across the country.

We followed Lee to the main hallway of the Exhibit Level. From here, we had access to three incredible exhibit halls – the Hargrett Rare Book & Manuscript Library, the Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies, and the Walter J. Brown Media Archives & Peabody Awards Collection. These libraries are an incredible look into Georgia’s history and its cultural influence. Our group saw everything from 1900s fashion statements, to one of Georgia’s first motion picture films, to a replica of Senator Richard Russell Jr.’s senate office.

Fun Fact: The replica office was complete with a library, model airplanes, paintings and … two telephones on the desk? One was an actual telephone. But the other wasn’t a phone at all – it was a hidden transistor radio the senator used to secretly catch baseball games during work!

What differentiates these spaces from typical museums is their hands-on, interactive nature. Are you a student wanting a closer look at a historical piece of clothing? A professor looking to sift through rare manuscripts? Anything that interests a curious mind from these exhibits (and more!) can be requested for study.

Through some hallways and down a large elevator, Lee took our group to the doors of the Special Collections vault – containing over two centuries of UGA and Georgia history in the form of official records, images, plans, publications and artifacts. Kept at a constant 50 degrees and 30% humidity, the stories-tall vault was a site to behold! Towards the end of our vault tour, Lee led us down an aisle containing all sorts of garments and artifacts. He pulled out a dress that belonged to none other than First Lady Rosalynn Carter. The dress boasted a beautiful peanut print, in true Georgia fashion!

Visit Special Collections to learn more about how you can access incredible primary source materials and explore its exhibit halls!