Bruce Peel Special Collections

The University of Alberta "Rare Book Room" was founded in 1964, when room became available in the new Cameron Science & Technology Library.[3] Before the establishment of the rare book room, the Library had most of its collections stored on open stacks, and in 1964 the decision was made to segregate the oldest and most expensive books into a protected area.[4] The rare book room was curated and managed by Dorothy Hamilton, who had previously served as head of the Reference Department.[4] In 1964, the Library Committee established a special fund for purchasing special collections, and a fund of $50,000 was set aside to support the nimble purchasing decisions necessary to take advantage of "fleeting opportunities."[5] This increased to an annual commitment of $100,000 in 1965, and the flexibility of this fund allowed the University to acquire many gems for its special collections, including the 3,500-volume library of the Archbishop of Salzburg,[6] the 8,000-volume Robert J. Woods Collection of western Americana,[7] the Viennese Theatre Playbills Collection, the archives of the Black Sparrow Press[8] and the Curwen Press,[9] and 105 rare, early edition works by John Bunyan.[10]

When Bruce Peel retired from his post as head librarian in 1982, the library's special collections was named in honour of his contributions to the growth of the university library.[2] In a letter to the current president, Myer Horowitz, Peel wrote, "The naming of the Library's Special Collections area was completely unexpected. I began librarianship in charge of a special collection of Canadiana so that the field of scarce, rare and valuable books has always been an interest of mine; I am very happy with the naming."[2]

In 1984, special collections moved from Cameron library to Rutherford Library basement.[11] In 2015-16, the Bruce Peel Special Collections closed for renovations.[12] Existing book stacks in Rutherford Library South five floors above the existing basement space were converted into a climate-controlled, secure space customized for expanding collections.[12][13]

The collection includes more than 100,000 rare books and a collection of archival materials that explore a range of local and international subjects.[1][12] Highlighted research collections are described on the Peel website[14] and often include a sampling of representative images.

Each year the Bruce Peel Special Collections mounts a number of exhibitions for the public and university community, both online and in-house that showcase elements of their collection.[15] For most exhibitions, the Peel team publishes an exhibition catalogue, and these catalogues are distributed by University of Alberta Press.[16] In this century, Peel's published catalogues and digital exhibitions have won more awards than any other academic library , including the Katharine Kyes Leab and Daniel J. Leab American Book Prices Current Exhibition Catalogue Award from the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section of the Association of College and Research Libraries.[17][18][19]

Since 1987, when the University's Senate created an endowment for this purpose, the librarians at Bruce Peel Special Collections have acquired a rare book in recognition of each honorary degree recipient celebrated at convocation.[20] Before each convocation ceremony, honorary degree recipients are celebrated at a private event, which is when they are introduced to the rare book purchased in their honour.[20] The books are displayed in the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium for the duration of convocation ceremonies each year, and are then inscribed with a special nameplate and housed in Bruce Peel Special Collections.[20]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bruce Peel Special Collections.

• Official website
• Official blog
• Bruce Peel Special Collections at the Internet Archive