SC&A: Rare and Antiquarian Books

Rare and Antiquarian Books in Special Collections & Archives

SC&A collects a number of rare and antiquarian books, which support both its manuscript collections and the university's curriculum offerings. Collecting areas and strengths include:

Northern Virginiana
City and Town Planning
Travel and Transportation
Book Arts and Printmaking
Twentieth-century American Politics and Culture
Antiquarian Cookbooks
Scotland and Scottish heritage
Earth Science, Ecology, and Oceanography

Rare and Antiquarian books in SC&A do not circulate due to value, rarity, and/or fragility. They must be used in the SC&A Reading Room during normal operating hours. They can be located by searching the University Libraries' Library Catalog at:

http://magik.gmu.edu/webvoy.htm

Below are major named book collections among other holdings in SC&A's rare and antiquarian book holdings:

William Webster Diehl Collection - William W. Diehl (1891-1978), a scientist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture for nearly 40 years, was President of the Mycological Society of America from 1950-1958. He wrote several papers and monographs on his research, experiments, and findings in mycology. The Diehl Collection contains 161 volumes dating from 1753-1959 dealing with algae, fungi, grasses, and other botanical subjects.

Early Twentieth Century Womens Magazines - Harper's Bazaar (1913-1956) Vanity Fair (1913-1922), and Vogue (1913-1956). Please consult SC&A for access information.

Elizabeth Fairfax Cookbook - The Elizabeth Fairfax Cookbook is associated with two women of the Fairfax family by the two inscriptions present on the front page. The book contains over two hundred recipes for cookery, medicine and household products. The recipes are handwritten on vellum. The recipes in the book have been written in by several different people and had been continually added until approximately 1795.

Stephen S. Fuller Collection - Economist Stephen S. Fuller is a George Mason University professor in the School of Public Policy, and member of both the Governor's Board of Economists (Virginia) and the Board of Directors of the Global Environment and Technology Foundation. He is author of Economy Watch: The Monthly Report on the Washington Area's Index of Leading Economic Indicators, a periodical published by the Greater Washington Research Center. The Stephen S. Fuller Collection contains various types of published materials relating to economics, transportation, urban planning, demographics, tourism, recreation, and historic preservation in the Washington Metropolitan and other areas.

Herschel H. Helm Collection - Herschel H. Helm was the Leader of The Washington and Northern Virginia Company of Jamestowne Society for the years 1977-1987. As a strong supporter of the Company and as a person who exemplified the ideals of early Jamestowne, the Company donated funds to purchase 28 titles dealing with early colonial Virginia for citizens, students, and scholars. The Herschel H. Helm Jamestowne Collection comprises printed books and pamphlets about the history of Jamestowne and its lasting influence on the history and culture of the Commonwealth of Virginia and, subsequently, on the United States.

Herbert Little Collection - This collection contains 153 Federal Writers Project travel guides for the forty-eight states, Alaska and Puerto Rico; and principal cities, such as New York City, Los Angles, Philadelphia, and New Orleans; major highways like U.S. Route 1, the Ocean Highway, and the Oregon Trail.

Francis J. McNamara Collection - Francis John McNamara (1915-2007) was a counterintelligence expert who was staff director of the House Commitee on Un-American Activities during his tenure from 1958 to 1969. Later, served as executive secretary of the Subversive Activities Control Board. During his entire career, McNamara studied communist influence in the United States and among other populations. The Francis J. McNamara Book Collection comprises 283 titles dealing with communism and related topics.

Rosemary Poole Cookbook Collection - Donated by George Mason University professor of English, Rosemary J. Poole, in 1998; the collection features more than 200 American cookbooks of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Saint Andrews Society of Washington, D.C. Collection - Donated by Saint Andrews Society of Washington, D.C. in 2003; the collection features 199 volumes dealing with Scottish culture and heritage.

Daniele C. Struppa Collection of Rare Books and Manuscripts - Donated by former George Mason University Dean and professor of mathematics, Daniele Struppa, the collection includes Euclid, Elementorum Libri XV (1627) and Clavius, Aritmetica Prattica (1671). The most noteworthy and earliest volume in the collection is Satirae (1515) by the Roman-period satirist and poet, Juvenal. Other materials include a letter penned by Arrigo Boito, author of Mefistofele.