The Special Collections and Archives at Framingham State University were established in the early 1970s in order to collect, preserve and provide public access to materials that reflect the rich history and development of the university.

Including such interesting facts as:

• FSU started, way back in the early 19th century, as the very first public K-12 teacher training school in the nation.
• Rev Cyrus Peirce, the first 'Headmaster' of FSU (back when it was known as the first public 'Normal School') was Woke as Woke can be, for that time, and ours - anti corporal punishment, anti-slavery, pro-international peace...
• FSU was, of course, fully-integrated from the very beginning. Free Black American Mary Miles attended FSU when it was still called a 'Normal School', married Henry Bibbs (self-freed former slave and abolitionist), then escaped with him in 1850 to Canada, where she worked as a teacher, newspaper editor, abolitionist, businesswoman, and is considered by some the first Canadian woman journalist. And yes; that residence hall here is named for Mary Miles Bibb.
• In the late 19th century, alumna Olivia Davidson Washington was one of the founders, alongside her husband, Booker T. Washington, of what became Tuskegee University, one of the most well-known HBCUs.
• It was an FSU Alumna, Ruth Graves Wakefield, who invented and popularized the 'Toll House Cookie'
• The American public school teacher Christa McCauliffe, honored by being chosen as the first 'Teacher in Space', but who tragically died during the 1986 Challenger Disaster, was an FSU Alumna.

University Record Groups

• Thirteen groups of written / printed university records from FSU's past

Special Collections

• Ruth H. Carter Children's Literature Collection
  • An FSU alum and faculty, she focused on children's lit., then donated her collection (19th and early 20th century kids books) to FSU
• Martin F. O'Connor Poetry and Travel Book Collection
  • Named in honor of a past FSU president, this focuses most on poetry (1960 - present)
• The Ruth Graves Wakefield Cookbook Collection [link opens new tab/window]
  • Yep, from the chocolate chip cookie lady
• The Imprint Book Collection
  • Fancy, limited-edition and extra artistically-printed and bound books published by the short-lived publisher the Imprint Society
• Rare Books Collection
  • Books of notable value / relevance to FSU; many help show the evolution of public school teacher training over the decades
• Raymond J. Callahan Book Collection
  • 19th and 20th century books about Middlesex County towns, meant for use by local history and genealogy buffs, and named in honor of local newspaper man Raymond J. Callahan
• Faculty Publications Collection
  • The Whittemore Library adds one copy of faculty publications to our regular collection on the shelves downstairs AND stores one (non-circulating) in the Halpern Special Collections Room (110).
• Our Manuscript Collections
  • Thirty-four manuscript collections: Written and printed materials, photographs, and ephemera from admins, faculty, students/alumns, and other FSU-adjacent people from FSU's past. And a random Japanese scroll.

Academic researchers use online catalogs and databases. Researchers visiting archives use something called 'Finding Aids'.

Some of the finding aids for our archival and special collections are available online, some aren't. Any of our finding aids not yet digitized are available in print, to be consulted in the Halpern Special Collections Room (110).

Some of the items from our archives/special collections (mostly photos) have been digitized and are viewable online in the FSU-DR,  Digital Exhibits@FSU Omeka, Digital Commonwealth and the Internet Archive - with more to come.

However, many of our Special Collection items are print books - many of which can be found in the Minuteman Online Library Catalog. You'll see SPEC COLL as part of each book's unique 'call number', which will tell you that the book is shelved in 110, the Special Collections Room, on the first floor of the library. You can't check those out, but can use them inside room 110.

Items housed in the FSU Archives & Special Collections do not circulate. They can be viewed by researchers both from within and from outside the FSU community. To view any of the University's physical archival or manuscript collections, patrons need to:

• Complete a registration form
• Make a scheduled appointment to view the items in SC110, The John Halpern Special Collections Room.
• Appointments are available during Monday - Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

For full details, Visit the  Archives / Special Collections Page.