Dr. Leonard Osborne was a U.S. Navy surgeon based in Maryland during the War of 1812. His personal journal, dated 1809 to 1815, is one of the many treasures held in Special Collections and Archives. In it, he describes medical lectures he attended, some medical treatments, various locations his ship visited, and his fellow seamen. He also included some...
Over the last few years, the Ebola epidemic, a resurgence of measles outbreaks, mutating influenza viruses, and a host of other diseases have caused concern throughout the world. Although many people are afraid that these viruses and bacterium will spread easily and quickly, medical professionals and researchers work ...
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, African-American poetry and fiction began to develop in two distinctly different ways. As educational opportunities improved in selected areas of the United States, some black writers sought to emulate the traditional forms and themes of classical white authors. Still others began to...
The Jan Dailey and John Money Correspondence Collection documents the shifting understanding of sex and gender identity in psychology and psychiatry in the late 20th century. The collection contains letters and articles from 1974 to 1996 that focuses on topics such as gender identity...
Special Collections and Archives holds many books, periodicals, images, illustrations, and manuscript collections that are useful in the study of human sexuality. These resources span a broad array of topics, including both mainstream and what some might consider "alternative" sexual practices. One of the most interesting of these topics is...
Punch, or the London Charivari was a British weekly magazine that specialized in humor and satire. Starting publication in 1841, the magazine took its title from the hunchbacked and hook-nosed Punch puppet of Punch and Judy, ubiquitous figures in the UK and other parts of Europe for many decades. The magazine featured numerous...
Scheherazade and the Arabian Nights have enchanted readers for centuries. The history of the book is as fascinating as the stories themselves. Scholars have concluded that the Arabian Nights are a composite of stories written by numerous individuals over several hundred years, likely dating to...
Mexico has had a tremendously rich cultural history. Pre-Columbian Mexico had a fascinating blend of native cultures. There were many different native groups that inhabited the land throughout those early years. Post-Columbian Mexico was an interesting and exciting time full of discovery for the...
Special Collections and Archives holds a letter from abolitionist, John Brown, to his wife and children dated November 23, 1855. Brown is best known for attempting to to start a liberation movement among enslaved African Americans and for his unsuccessful seizure of the United States Armory located in Harpers Ferry, Virginia in 1859, which is considered a precursor to...
Special Collections and Archives holds many rare, unique, limited, and first edition works of American literature, including books by famed author John Steinbeck whose books of fiction and non-fiction have often sparked controversy....
