Where can you find a page from the Gutenberg Bible, a children's book written by Nazis and David Letterman's yearbook picture?
Try the Archives and Special Collections department of Bracken Library.
Those are just a few of the resources this department makes available to Ball State University students and others who are interested in rare or historical materials, said John Straw, director of the Archives and Special Collections Research Center.
Straw said the department's archives include newspapers, photographs and other documents chronicling the histories of Muncie and Ball State since their inceptions.
These resources can be extremely helpful to students who want to know what Ball State was like in the past, Straw said. He said students can research everything from Vietnam War protests on campus to the ghost that lives in Elliott Hall.
"We're here for students to be able to use us," he said.
The department also houses part of the Middletown Studies, a research project about the city of Muncie that has been going on since 1924.
The archives also include student films, anatomical models, World War II films, almost 45,000 architectural slides and a U.S. Civil War collection, among other things, he said.
Students can handle nearly all of these materials upon request, Straw said, and the office would be glad to make scans or copies of materials for student use.
Ball State English Professor Rai Peterson said she has been taking her classes to presentations at the department for years, and they are usually pleased and surprised when they see all that the office has to offer.
"We have some really...thrilling artifacts that students can get a hold of just by asking," she said.
Many materials can be accessed through the department's Web site, as well, Straw said.
One of the department's goals is to develop digital collections and technologies, Straw said.
"We're making special collections available for students who couldn't come here," he said.
The Web site also provides information about the department and ways to contact workers to set up structured visits or tours.
Students also have access to special collections and rare books through this department.
Although students must wear white gloves and are not allowed to use ink pens when handling any rare or historical books or materials, Straw encourages students to come in and see these extensive collections.
"We're open for student use. We don't want students to feel afraid to come in here," he said.
Peterson said none of the libraries she has worked at are as open and willing to let people view their materials as Ball State and that students should take advantage of these resources.
She said it is a valuable experience for students to handle and study rare materials. "It helps us to understand questions the original audience posed," she said.
One of the most valuable rare books in the department is a jewel-encrusted book of poems by John Keats.
The department has the third-largest John Steinbeck collection in the nation, as well as a Nazi collection, Straw said.
He said one of the items that students are most impressed by is a copy of "Alice in Wonderland" illustrated by Salvador Dali, which includes his signature and an original artwork.
Most of the collections that the department owns were developed through donations and grant money, Straw said. "Collections are often built around the expertise of faculty and to support curriculum."
Because many of the items in the department are valuable, Straw said, the department employs special security measures and even has a fire system that uses gas instead of sprinklers. "Water can harm books as much as fire can," he said.
Special environmental controls, low lights and the use of acid-free storage boxes and papers ensure that materials do not deteriorate quickly, Straw said.
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