Since 1945, the Department has been dedicated to the collection, preservation, and provision of access to materials which document the history of the University, Ruston, Lincoln Parish, and North Louisiana. Although not part of the Department of Special Collections, the Louisiana Tech Museum is also housed on the fourth floor. There are over 500 manuscript collections consisting of personal and family papers, business and church records, diaries, maps, oral history tapes, photographs, paintings and sketches, and other similar materials. The Department is also a repository of rare books and periodicals related to the literature, history, and culture of Louisiana and the South. The University Archives contains the records, printed publications, photographs, theses and dissertations of:

• Louisiana Industrial Institute (1894-1921).
• Louisiana Polytechnic Institute (1921-1970).
• Louisiana Tech University (1970-Present).

The manuscripts are not catalogued in the library's Online Public Access Catalog, so the only way to search them is through the Site Search box in the upper right hand corner or, if you know the collection you are looking for, you can click on it in our Collection Index. Note: The Site Search box uses a Google search engine to search only our site. You can use it to search for collections or information on the department.

We will be updating this site over the coming months as we upload the finding aids. Eventually, all of the manuscript finding aids will be published online in a word searchable database. This will be advantageous to anyone wanting to do research in the collections.

Some of our major collections are:

• Camp Ruston

• Edgar Lancaster Collection

• Frellsen Fletcher Smith Collection

• F. Jay Taylor Collection

• University Archives
• State Forestry Archives
• The American Foreign Policy Center holdings
• William King Stubbs Architectural Archive
• Albino Hinojosa Artwork Collection
• Early American Imprints, Series 1, and Series 2
• Evander McNair Graham Family Papers, 1812-1965
• Israel Shreve Letters, 1771-1804
• Sparta Groundwater Commission Papers
• The Panula U.N. Stamp Collection

To request information on our collections please fill out our email form or send email to speccoll@library.latech.edu.

Click here for Regulations Governing the Use of Materials.