How do I find....?

Books and Periodicals

The Library's online catalog is a good place to begin your search for books and periodicals held in Special Collections. The library catalog can be searched by author, title, subject, keyword, and other terms. Once an initial search has been conducted, the “limit/sort” option can be used to narrow the search to materials located in Special Collections.

If you are looking for facsimiles of illuminated manuscripts, consult our web exhibit on Special Collections' holdings of facsimiles.

Manuscript Collections

Alphabetical List of Manuscript Collections

Brief descriptions of Special Collections’ archival/manuscript collections can be found in the Alphabetical List of Manuscript Collections, a list arranged alphabetically by creator of the collection. Here you will find collection call numbers, brief descriptions of the content of the collection, and the physical size of the collection. Many collections have a more detailed guide (finding aid) that can be accessed by clicking on the collection title.

Library Catalog

The Library's online catalog is also a good place to search for brief descriptions of archival/manuscript collections held in Special Collections. The library catalog can be searched by author, title, subject, keyword, and other terms.

Often, an effective way to search the catalog is from the keyword search page. Limit your keyword search to “location”: Special Collections and “format”: manuscripts

Another search strategy is to conduct an initial title or subject search, and then use the "limit/sort" option to narrow the search to "location": Special Collections.

Guides to Archival Collections (Finding Aids)

Search the Arizona Archives Online to find guides to archival holdings at the University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University, and Arizona State University. To search only the collections at the U of A Special Collections, go to “Advanced Search” and select University of Arizona Main Library Special Collections.

Photographs

Special Collections has over 65,000 photographs in its collections. Photographs can be found in the University of Arizona Collection, the Arizona and Southwestern Photograph Collection or within manuscript collections of organizational records or personal papers.

To find photographs in the University of Arizona Photograph Collection or the Arizona and Southwestern Photograph Collection, consult our online lists, which provide a subject-based index to the photographs in these collections.

To find photographs in manuscript collections, search the online finding aids in the Arizona Archives Online database. Finding aids (or guides) provide descriptions of a collection, including background information, restriction information (if any), and box and folder lists. You may perform a general search by keyword or subject to discover references to photographs in predominately paper-based collections.

Maps

A selection of Special Collection's map holdings can be found in the Library's online catalog. You may limit your keyword search to “location”: Special Collections and “format”: map.