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Explore Our Collections

Chisum Special Collections primarily holds printed publications related to the American West from the late 19th century to the present. All our items can be found in the UW Libraries catalog. Utilize the QuickSearch box on the UW Libraries homepage, then click on a title to see what branches and spaces carry it. Some of our items are rare and unique to Chisum Special Collections, while others can be found at multiple UW Libraries locations. Scroll for information about each collection. 
  • Old downtown Laramie

    Grace Raymond Hebard Collection

     

    The Grace Raymond Hebard Collection is considered the most comprehensive collection of published materials about Wyoming history, culture and natural history. It is the library of record for University of Wyoming publications. With more than 50,000 cataloged titles, this collection helps to document the history and culture of Wyoming and the region through the acquisition, preservation, and provided access of these unique materials. The Grace Raymond Hebard papers are housed in the American Heritage Center.

  • Dakota woman in beauty shop

    Cheramy Native American Collection

     

    This collection was donated by Ed and Shirley Cheramy of Jackson, Wyoming in 2008. It is split between the Toppan Rare Books Library at the American Heritage Center and Special Collections. The collection details American Plains Indian history from the 19th and 20th centuries, focusing primarily on the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes. Published works that make up the collection are books, articles, and government publications.

  • Victorian Fashion mini book

    Canoso Miniature Book Collection

     

    Donated in 2007 by Michael Canoso, this collection includes books smaller than 3 inches by 3 inches as well as a selection of artists' books, some pieces of which date from as early as 1830. A variety of subjects are represented; with common topics including alphabet books, fairy tales, poetry, religion, and works by Shakespeare.

  • Austalian girls with sheep

    UW Wool Laboratory Collection

     

    The University of Wyoming Wool Laboratory Collection consists of records from the UW Wool Lab which operated from 1907-2012. It's showpieces are the unusual 872 preserved wool samples dating back to 1830. There are over 1,000 titles relating to sheep and wool, including the WT Ritch Library donated in 1948 by the prominent Australian sheepman. Records deal largely with Wyoming and the Western United States, although there are books and articles from around the world, particularly Australia and Scotland.

  • Montgomery Ward ad

    Historic Clothing Collection

     

    Consisting of both books and clothing magazines, the historic clothing collection also includes books on costumes and the history of undergarments, a limited range of Sears Roebuck and Company Catalogs and Montgomery Ward Catalogs largely from the late 1940's and the 1950's, in addition to vintage fabric guides with fabric swatches.

  • Black U.S. Navy servicemen

    John W. Ravage Collection

     

    The items in the Ravage Collection were donated by Professor Emeritus John "Jack" W. Ravage who worked in the University of Wyoming Department of Journalism and Communication from 1973-2000. Ravage's donation consists of books that he used as part of his research, primarily related to the African American history and experience of the West. This collection complements Dr. Ravage's papers, located at the American Heritage Center.

  • Coe book plate

    William Robertson Coe Collection

     

    William Robertson Coe bequeathed around $4 million dollars to the University of Wyoming between 1951-1961, much of which paid for a new library, so naturally the library was named in his honor.  Coe has his own substantial western history collection, and the existing library could not hold it. As items with his bookplate are found on the the main shelves of Coe Library, they are transferred here to join the rest of the Coe Collection.

  • Shakespeare set

    General Special Collections Materials

     

     

    A general collection of Special materials holds items deemed to be of high value, possibly rare, but that do not fall under the collection guidelines of the Toppan Rare Books Library at the American Heritage Center. These materials have been donated and collected throughout the University libraries history and encompass a wide variety of subjects national and international in scope.

  • emigrant train ink drawing

    Far West Library of Howard H. Hays

     

    In 2016 the personal western library of Howard H. Hays was donated to the Emmett D. Chisum Special Collections at University of Wyoming Libraries, facilitated by his granddaughter, Sarah Hays. This collection reflects Hays' interest in the American West and the regions in which his businesses operated. Works within this collection, coupled with materials at American Heritage Center, provide a great resource for history on early National Park Service Concessions. The Howard H. Hays papers are housed in the American Heritage Center.

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