Grand Valley Magazine - Fall 2013 - (Page 21)

Robert Beasecker and Nancy Richard run the Special Collections and University Archives, both found in Seidman House. photo by Bernadine Carey Tucker Anyone who has walked the Great Lakes Plaza from the south end of the Little Mac bridge to Lake Michigan Hall has passed by a unique collection of historical artifacts that are hidden in plain sight. The collections hold a remarkable array of hidden gems, rare treasures that are available for research, study and general exploration. A pristine World War I uniform worn by Russel Kirkhof, for whom a campus building in Allendale is named, is a highlight. So is the collection of notes, manuscripts and letters of celebrated Michiganborn author Jim Harrison, and one of the larger collections of books, letters and artifacts about Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War anywhere in the U.S. These, and much more, can be found inside the Seidman House, a small building that is home to thousands of pieces of history in the University Libraries' holdings. Robert Beasecker is the director of Special Collections and University Archives, and asking him to pick his favorite piece from the collection doesn't elicit a simple response. "So you're asking me to pick which one of my children I love the most?" he said, jokingly. The collection is so vast, and each piece or collection so different from the others, it's a hard choice to make, he said. The variety of the university's Special Collections is what makes it so interesting to Beasecker and University Archivist Nancy Richard. The number of books tops 32,000, and the collections continue to grow, but quantifying the total number of items in the Seidman House is difficult. "The materials range from books to manuscripts, from one item collections to collections of hundreds of cartons, from digital files, to paintings, artifacts, newspapers and photographs," Richard said. "Because of this, there really isn't an accurate way to measure the collection except by the number of feet of material on the shelves and that really doesn't do it justice since all of the material here is unique." The collections often go unnoticed by students and the public because they're not on display like books in the library, but kept in controlled conditions for the sake of preservation, Beasecker said. "The special collections are usually rare items, oneof-a-kinds, and other materials that are exceptionally significant," Beasecker said. "We have a duty to keep these things safe, and well cared for, but we also don't want to keep them hidden away or sitting in storage. We want 21 www.gvsu.edu Grand Valley Magazine http://www.gvsu.edu

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Grand Valley Magazine - Fall 2013

Campus News
Athletics
Arts
Donor Impact
A Laker bucket list
Bridging the justice gap
Seidman House holds hidden national gems
International Education
Research
Why the humanities still matter
Q&A James Smither
Off the Path
Focal Point
Sustainability
Alumni News

Grand Valley Magazine - Fall 2013