Research Guides: Microform Research Sets: Afro-American Rare Book Collection

Online Options

Many of these titles are in the public domain and can be found in HathiTrust, Google Books, or the Internet Archive.

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The University Libraries are members of HathiTrust; U o fA students, faculty and staff can now download complete works and take advantage of other features, including building and sharing collections of works. Read more on our HathiTrust Guide.
A collaborative archive of digitized books and periodicals. Most books that can be read full-text online were published prior to 1923 but there are a large number of government documents, including very recent Congressional reports and hearings.
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A collaborative archive of digitized books and periodicals. Most books that can be read full-text online were published prior to 1923 but there are a large number of government documents, including very recent Congressional reports and hearings.

This link provides access to HathiTrust for anyone without requiring authentication. You will be able to download books and periodicals one page at a time. If you are a U of A student, faculty, or staff member, please use our customized link to HathiTrust.
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A growing collection of records for both recent and long out-of-print titles. Because a search may retrieve results from the full-text of many books, Google Books is most useful in helping you to identify titles of interest in your research. A number of popular magazines and government documents have also been added to the Google Books service.

About this Collection

Afro-American Rare Book Collection

About: This collection was selected in 1976 from the holdings of the Western States Black Research Center in Los Angeles by its founder and Director, Mayme Clayton, librarian, archivist, and bibliophile. It contains books, usually first editions, which were written primarily in the 19th and 20th centuries. Includes works by Frederick Douglass, Paul Laurence Dunbar, and Sojourner Truth.
Location: Library Annex Cabinets ; E185.5 .A34 .A34
Format: Microfiche
Arrangement: Arranged alphabetically by author.
Items: 152 titles
Publication: Kistler Data Management, 1977

Indexes and Guides

These titles are individually cataloged in OneSearch.

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Search library collections both print and online, connect to full text, request and renew, and save favorite items and searches.

Index to the Afro-American Rare Book Collection by Mayme A. Clayton and Kathleen S. Allen
Call Number: Library Annex LISA E 185.5 .A34 Index
Publication Date: 1977

More Information

This blog post from the Davenport Public Library has more information about Mayme Clayton and the collection she created. There is also an interview with her in the HistoryMakers video collection.

Mayme A. Clayton’s Afro-American Rare Book Collection

History Makers This link opens in a new window
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Covers: - 2000. Offers oral history interviews with notable African Americans. Search by topic, personal values, social and racial issues, profession, and more.