Library Notes

Members of the Space Committee of the MSU Libraries have been working long and hard with representatives from MSU’s Office of Planning, Design & Construction, Scott Rice Office Works, and Steelcase to select furnishings for the new “den” being established at the top of the main interior ramp into the First Level of MSU’s Duane G. Meyer Library. The furnishings now are on order. Funding for this particular phase of the multi-year library renovation project has been made possible in…

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Earlier this month, the Special Collections and Archives unit of the Missouri State University Libraries  hosted middle-school students from the Springfield Public School’s Explore! program.  This summer program allows students and their parents to select from a wide variety of courses tailored to spark their imagination and challenge their intellect.  The 7th grade students who visited Meyer Library learned more about African American history in the Ozarks. Archivists from MSU’s Special Collections and from the State Historical Society of Missouri met…

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The electronic version of the 6-volume print set provides a comprehensive, multidisciplinary view of Latin American history and culture from prehistoric times to the present. It covers cultural issues and includes numerous biographical profiles of important figures in politics, letters, and the arts. The second edition of the Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture is a monumental work and represents the best of scholarship on Latin America.  This edition incorporates new material in substantial ways. It includes 568 new entries, expanding the total…

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The Library Services Record Group (RG 3/6) in Meyer Library’s Special Collections and Archives represents the history of library services at Missouri State University, including photographs, meeting minutes, financial records, reports, and more, dating back to the 1919. The library began with 600 volumes in 1905 as a part of the Missouri State Normal School #4.  It moved into the north wing of the new academic building (Carrington Hall) in 1909 and by 1912 its collection had grown to 12,000 volumes.  An article in the…

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Next Thursday evening, June 28th, is the big Springfield premiere of a feature-length documentary about Springfield’s rich musical heritage. Dave Hoekstra, a media person (Sun-Times and WGN) and author from Chicago, is the producer, and Abbey Waterworth, a local singer and musician (and a student employee in the MSU Libraries), is the associate producer. The event at the Fox Theater on the Square is free and open to all. No tickets required. The event is being hosted by the History…

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This week a crew from Missouri Terrazzo has been working on the terrazzo flooring on the main First Level of the Duane G. Meyer Library on the Springfield campus of Missouri State University. They are filling and squaring off gaps in the flooring near the new RIS Commons as well as near the forthcoming new living room or den, made possible through generous support from Don and Ruth Martin. Once the terrazzo is finished, the rest of the carpeting in…

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In May PBS began a new television series called the Great American Read. Quoting from the project’s FaceBook page: “THE GREAT AMERICAN READ, a new eight-part television competition and nationwide campaign, explores the power of books and the joy of reading through the lens of America’s 100 best-loved novels. Vote for your favorites before the series returns this fall.” The MSU Libraries is partnering with other organizations to plan a series of events around this national public campaign. Preliminary planning…

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The summer issue of the e-publication called Public Affairs Lens has been released. In this second issue there is a staff highlight about Shannon Conlon in Interlibrary Loan, an article about change, and an article about a new book examining libraries and homelessness. In a video embedded in that article, the author “Ryan Dowd (Director of Hesed House, Chicago) shares advice on taking a more empathetic approach toward homeless individuals.” Public Affairs Lens is a publication of the Public Affairs Committee…

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The online, full-text Eastern edition of the Wall Street Journal newspaper is available from January 2, 1984 to today — over 34 years of coverage. Wire service articles are not included, nor are most financial data that appear in the print edition. Full text is online in html format only, with PDF downloads available. Meyer Library also has the Wall Street Journal on microfilm from Feb. 1959-Dec. 2009.

The Ozarks Jewish Archives (M 43) in Meyer Library’s Special Collections and Archives contains material from the local Jewish community dating back to 1924.  It includes items about Temple Israel (the first synagogue in Springfield, Missouri), oral histories, and information related generally to Jewish activity in the Ozarks. By the late 19th century there was a small community of Jewish people living in the Ozarks.  In 1893, they organized Temple Israel, and during the early 20th century, the community grew large enough…

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