Small Special Collections Reading Room

The Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library holds more than 16 million objects including manuscripts, archival records, rare books, maps, broadsides, photographs, audio and video recordings and more. Collections are particularly strong in American and British literature, the history of Virginia and the southeastern United States, the history and archives of the University of Virginia, sporting books and manuscripts, World War I, bibliography and book arts (including fine press books, pop-up books, and typography). Occupying 58,000 square feet in two underground floors of the shared Small Special Collections Library and Harrison Institute building, the library features a reading room with seating for 32 researchers. Staff retrieve collections for researchers from 12.82 miles of shelving. While the stacks are not open to the public, the Reading Room is open to anyone with a photo id. The building also hosts exhibitions of collection materials on the first and second floors, some created jointly with the Harrison Institute.