By the Archives Staff

The Saint Louis University archives, located in the St. Louis Room of Pius XII Memorial Library, houses dozens of interesting archival and manuscript collections. These collections contain artifacts, clippings, documents, letters, pamphlets, photographs and other types of material related to the activities and people of Saint Louis University and the greater St. Louis region. The University's archives staff -- John Waide, Dr. Randy McGuire and Christine F. Harper -- present here brief descriptions of 10 collections housed in the archives that they feel "might provide others with some unexpected enjoyment." They are listed in no particular order.

1. Oscar W. Collet Manuscript Collection. Although the records do not indicate that he ever received a degree, Collet was among Saint Louis University's earliest students. He began his education at the University in 1833 at age 12 and continued here until age 18. The material comprising the Collet Collection was donated to Saint Louis University by his wife in 1905, one year after his death. From his work over the years as an officer of the Missouri Historical Society to his own historical research, the collection imparts valuable information on Mr. Collet's life, the St. Louis of his day and the topics of his constant research, especially the history of the Louisiana Territory.

2. Dr. Thomas A. Dooley Scrapbook Collection. Dooley, the famous American medical missionary to Southeast Asia during the 1950s, was a 1952 graduate of the School of Medicine. His humanitarian work was tragically cut short by his death from cancer in 1961 at the age of 34. Shortly after his death, Saint Louis University received from Dr. Dooley's mother some 31 personal scrapbooks of clippings, letters, pamphlets, photographs, telegrams, etc., along with other memorabilia that trace the life, work and achievements of this remarkable man.

3. Fr. Boleslaus T. Lukaszewski, SJ, Photographs. "Father Luke," as he was affectionately known to students and colleagues, was an associate professor of philosophy at the University from 1947 to 1970. Father Luke's avocation was photography, and he could be seen day and night, for more than 20 years, photographing every conceivable University event. Upon his death in 1970, hundreds of neatly labeled canisters of film were turned over to John Bannon, SJ, a University historian and early archivist, and were placed in the University archives. Today we have some 40,000 images created by Father Luke, documenting two decades of life at Saint Louis University.

4. Dr. Rita G. Adams, University History Department, Photo Collection. Adams worked with Father Luke to collect a large number of historical photos of St. Louis and the University. These photos were included in the 1968 Sesquicentennial photo book published by the University. The originals for these photos, plus hundreds more that were not used for the publication, now are available for use in the archives. These 1,260 pictures consist of University buildings, students, faculty, events and many other topics that date to the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is a treasure trove.

5. Dr. Randy R. McGuire, Assistant University Archivist, Photographs. McGuire was inspired by the work of Father Luke, and when he realized nobody was officially responsible for photographing SLU as it is today, he took it on as a special project. He often can be seen around campus, shooting photos of new construction, students at work and play, buildings, statues and anything else that defines the University of today. Since 1992, McGuire has added nearly 8,500 images to the archives collections, supplementing the work of public relations photographers, who cover special events, and of student photographers who illustrate The University News and the Archive yearbook.

6. Saint Louis University Historical Records. This collection comprises records, manuscripts and ephemera produced roughly during the first century of the University community, which includes the school itself, St. Francis Xavier College Church and the Jesuits responsible for them both. Along with the University scrapbooks, this collection represents the main primary source for the late 19th and early 20th century history of the University. Over the years much historical material has been lost, and what remains here provides fascinating glimpses into the early work of the University, rather than a seamless history of its development and administration.

7. Judge Nathan B. Young Jr. Collections. Young, the first African-American judge in St. Louis history, was born in Tuskegee, Ala., on Nov. 28, 1894. His next-door neighbor was Booker T. Washington, the famous African-American educator and a friend and colleague of Young's father. Young eventually moved to St. Louis in 1925, where he lived until he passed away in 1993 at the age of 98. Young was a true renaissance man: husband, father, lawyer, judge, writer, publisher, historian, artist, musician and champion in the service of the African-American heritage.

8. Saint Louis University Historical Scrapbooks. The scrapbooks give evidence of the kinds of material deemed worthy of preservation by the early Jesuit educators at the University, material of significance to the University community, St. Louis locals and the national Catholic culture. The items in these 53 volumes range from autograph and circular letters to ephemera such as newspaper clippings, programs, pamphlets and souvenirs. The collection contains items dating from 1831 to 1942, with most of the material falling in the 20th century.

9. The Clemens Family Collections: The archives has several collections of personal papers relating to members of the notable Clemens clan of St. Louis:the Clemens-Hardaway Manuscript Collection, The Mullanphy-Clemens Family Manuscript Collection and the Clarke Family Manuscript Collection. The latest addition to the Clemens collections is the Cyril Clemens Manuscript Collection. Cyril, a distant cousin of Mark Twain, dedicated his life to promoting the author's memory and collected much material on his life and work, as well as autographs, manuscripts and photographs of world notables who joined Cyril's Mark Twain Society.

10. Peter A. Munch/Tristan Da Cunha Collection. In the late 1980s Dr. Charles E. Marske, professor of sociology at the University, secured for the archives Norwegian sociologist Munch's field notes, manuscripts, correspondence, scholarly papers, clippings, copies of documents and published materials, and ephemera chronicling his research on the people and culture of Tristan da Cunha, an island dependency of Great Britain in the South Atlantic Ocean. That the world at large is aware at all of the history and unique civilization of Tristan is largely due to Munch's popular and scholarly treatments of the Tristan community. Supplementary to this collection are the Charles E. Marske and Samuel P. Eastman Tristan da Cunha Collections.

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