Archives Hours:

Monday             12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Wednesay        10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Friday                 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Other times by appointment only

William Jewell College Archives and Special Collections is located on the intermediate floor of Charles F. Curry Library. Materials from the archives and special collections cannot be checked out or removed from the building. After prior arrangement, some materials may be used in specially assigned rooms in the library. Please see the Research Librarian and Archivist in the Special Collections room to use these collections.


Capps--Truman Collection
Retired Brigadier General and Mrs. Jack Capps gave this collection of letters from Harry and Bess Truman, and books by and about Mr. Truman, to the college in 2006.  Some of the books are signed by the author or by Mr. Truman.  The collection also contains some photographs.

Herget Collection
Dr. John F. Herget, former president of William Jewell College and an 1895 alumnus, presented this collection of Limited Editions Club books to the college in 1948.  Dr. Herget was president of the college from 1928-1942.  The collection includes books printed on special paper, illustrated by a talented artist, or bound in a unique fashion.

Hubmaier Collection
This is a collection of the writings of Dr. Balthasar Hubmaier, an Anabaptist, who was burned at the stake in Vienna in 1528 because of his religious beliefs.  The collection consists of 6 bound volumes of photographs of the original German works.  These photographic documents were collected by Dr. W. O. Lewis, former commissioner of the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society of Europe, from libraries in Berlin, Vienna, and Czechoslovakia.  Dr. George D. Davidson, former head of the Foreign Language Department at Jewell, created an English translation of Hubmaier's works in 1939.  The English and German editions are also available on microfilm.

Hull Papers
William R. Hull, Jr., a former Congressman from the Sixth Missouri District, donated his collection of personal and political papers from his years in the 84th to 92th Congresses.  The papers were divided between Park College and William Jewell College.  Jewell's collection consists of 1080 folders, 14 scrapbooks, and a complete set of microfilm.

Lenski Collection
Miss Lois Lenski, well known writer and illustrator of children's books, presented books and original illustrations to Curry Library in 1958.

Littleford Collection
Mr. Frank Littleford donated his collection of books and magazines to the library in the 1980's.  Although many of the items are about the Civil War, the collection includes materials related to several world conflicts involving the United States.

Malone Collection
Ted Malone, pseudonym of F. Alden Russell and a 1928 alumnus of William Jewell, presented his collection of modern American poetry to the college on February 14, 1939.  The collection contains poetry magazines, original manuscripts, clippings and individual volumes of poetry sent to Mr. Malone for use over his National Broadcasting Company radio program "Between the Bookends."  The collection also includes many recordings of these programs.

Mertins Collection
Dr. Louis M. Mertins, a 1910 alumnus of the college, presented this collection to the college on November 22, 1937.  Dr. Mertins gave the collection in honor of Dr. John Phelps Fruit, head of the English Department at Jewell from 1898 to 1943.   The collection contains first editions, silhouettes, and a collection of signatures. 

Missouri Collection
The Missouri Collection, established in 1970, emphasizes western Missouri history.  Special emphasis is given to acquiring material on Clay County and Liberty.  Items include books, articles, newspapers, pamphlets, and maps.

Partee Collection | Website
A repository for Missouri Baptist materials that provides programs to assist all Missouri Baptists in their own preservation and planning needs.

Payne Military Collection
Mr. Houstin Payne, a former officer in the U.S. Strategic Tactical Air Force department of photo intelligence in England and a 1932 alumnus of the college, gave this five volume collection of maps charting movement of American troops in the European theater during World War II.  Maps include rare aerial reconnaissance photographs of German bomb installations, daily records of road and reconnaissance attacks and attacks on enemy installations, captured monthly data on German bomb production, bomb launchings and targets in England.

Settle Collection
Mrs. Pauline Sharp, a 1937 alumnus of the college, gave the Settle Collection to the library in 1974 in honor of her father,  Rev. Raymond W. Settle, a 1922 alumnus of the college.  The collection includes books, periodicals, manuscripts and photographs covering various aspects of Western Americana.

Valentine Collection
Ms. Irene Renfer Valentine, a 1955 alumnus of the college, gave this collection of autographed children's books to the library.