Archives and Special Collections

Our Archives and Special Collections recently debuted a new site for collection finding aids. Finding aids help researchers locate specific materials in archival collections, so they’re an essential part of the archives experience. Staff have been working to ensure a smooth transition from the old method of locating finding aids so researchers are still able to find collections easily.

Archives and Special Collections staff have created subject guides for all our collections, which include both materials related to the history of Northeastern University and manuscript collections that capture the history of social movements, underrepresented communities, and infrastructure in Boston. These special collections cover a wide range of Boston history topics, from African Americans, the Latinx community, and women, to housing justice, education, the Central Artery/Tunnel Project (Big Dig), and more.

When on the Archives Catalog homepage, you can browse through these categories by clicking the Subject Guides link towards the bottom of the page:

From the main Subject Guides page, you can choose where you would like to start your search. By clicking on the “Show Subgroups” buttons, you can see all of the different subgroups for each subject guide. So if you wanted to do some research for Black History Month, after clicking to see all the subgroups, you will see the African American subgroup under Manuscripts.

After clicking on the link, you’ll be taken to a page listing all of the special collections related to African American history in Boston:

Collections are also listed under multiple subject areas to help make them more accessible.

We hope these new subject guides help our researchers find all of the collections that we have to offer in Archives and Special Collections! And as always, if you have any questions or would like to come visit us, feel free to stop by Snell Library Room 092 or email us at archives@northeastern.edu.

During finals week, it is important to remember to be kind to yourselves and give yourself a break every now and then. If you need a break from studying and from your all the variety of screens you’ve been staring at, come on down to the Archive and Special collections and look at some interesting books and photographs housed in our collections. We are located in the basement of Snell Library, Room 92. We are open Monday-Friday 8:30-5:00 so if you aren’t able to visit us during finals week, we’re always happy to have visitors!

• Missing the warm spring days and the colorful flowers that accompany them? Take a look through our copy of Select Flower Arrangements of Moribana and Heikwa. This book is bound in green silk printed with branches and has an accordion style opening.

• Need to see that there is life outside of finals? Our collection of photographs from The Theater Offensive shows colorful play performers and parties from this Boston based queer performance group.
• If you’re just wanting to look at pretty and colorful pictures of building ornamentation, we have that too! In The Grammar of Ornament you can flip through this large volume exploring the different building designs from all over the world and all in full color.

• In the mood for some frollicking animals? Come down and look at our copy of Chôjū Giga. These Japanese scrolls date from the 16th century and have been reproduced in a fold-out book. With scenes of frogs, mice, and monkeys, you are sure to forget (even if only for a little while) about the stresses of finals.

• And speaking of de-stressing, we have another fold out book with Japanese artwork, titled Sesshu’s Long Scroll: A Zen Landscape Journey. This pocket-sized book with a printing from beloved Japanese artist Sesshu and is filled with Japanese landscapes throughout the seasons.

• If you celebrate Christmas and are wanting to get into the spirit, we’ve got you covered.  You can look through pictures from our Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción records of past Christmas talent shows and events. We also have a beautifully illustrated poem by Sophie Jewett titled The Least of Christmas Carols.
• Feeling nostalgic? Our collection of Northeastern Yearbooks allow you to go back in time and look into the lives of previous students. Fun Fact: this fall was the 75th anniversary of the first enrollment of women at NU. We have photographs of these women when they first enrolled as well as photographs from their 50th anniversary in 1993. If you’re interested in going even further back, we have a collection of photographs from African American photographer Charles H. Bruce who photographed various scenes around the Boston area in the early 1900s.
• Traveling over the holidays? Or just wish you were? We have a multiple travel books and maps with illustrations that make you feel like you are there.  We have adventure memoirs from Rockwell Kent from his travels in Alaska as well as the Strait of Magellan in South America. If you’re looking for someplace warm to explore, we have The Golden Octopus: Legends of the South Seas filled with colorful illustrations of the Pacific islands. We also have maps of London and Paris from the 19th and 20th centuries that could help you plan your next trip across the Atlantic. The Paris guide even has a map of all the bus routes! (accuracy not guaranteed).

 

• And finally, we have pictures of dogs, but not just any dogs. From 1920s-1970s, Northeastern University had its very own husky as a mascot. There were five dogs who were crowned King Husky and attended various events on campus throughout their tenure.

Good luck on finals week and have a wonderful break!

The Northeastern University Library Archives and Special Collections has over 300 processed collections, so it can be an understandably overwhelming place to know where and how to search through all of these materials. Luckily, each collection comes with a finding aid that provides historical and biographical information on the collection and an inventory of materials in the collection. These finding aids have recently moved to a new platform that allows for a more efficient and user-friendly way for both old and new patrons of the archives to find what they are looking for. To begin your search, visit the Archives Catalog homepage at https://archivesspace.library.northeastern.edu/. If you know what you are looking for, you can put it in the search bar and begin your search. If you are unsure of where to start, there are links that allow you to browse the collections.*Search tip* When searching by a person’s name or by a phrase, use quotation marks around the terms in order to find that specific phrase. You will then be redirected to the page with the results of your search. From this page, you can add filters such as type, subject, names, and year in order to find exactly what you are looking for. When you find a collection that you are interested in, you can click on the collection name to look further into the collection. Each collection has a description on either the person or organization, as well as the types of materials within the collection. On the right side is a menu with the series and sub-series and a full folder inventory of materials. If you need to do another search, you can click on the magnifying glass at the top of the page, or on the Archives and Special Collections link in the top right corner and you will be able to start your search process over. If you are already on the Archives and Special Collections homepage, you can use the search bar in the middle of the page. Simply type in your search term and you will be redirected to the Archives Catalog page. So take a look and see what we have to offer and we look forward to seeing you down in the archives! If you have any questions, email us at archives@northeastern.edu and we will be happy to help in any way we can!  

A leading provider of commercial photography in the greater Boston area for over 80 years, FayFoto Boston provides photographs on assignment for corporate, business, and non-profit clients. The archive consists of over 7.5 million negatives from 1963 to 2006.   Steve Nelson, Partner at FayFoto Boston is excited that Northeastern University Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections agreed to preserve the collection. “FayFoto amassed tens of thousands of images over the course of many decades of providing photography to Boston’s business and political communities” states Nelson. “As current owners of the business, we were acutely aware of two things: we weren’t going to be able to care for the archive properly, and we lacked the resources and training to make this collection available to historians and other interested parties.”  

The photographs in the collection cover a wide range of subjects, including business head shots, architectural interiors and exteriors, corporate event coverage, industrial photography, and product still life. Though the collection primarily consists of historical Boston business photography, it also has a broader local and national historical significance including celebrities, politicians, events, and aerial photography.

 

            “The FayFoto collection is an amazing pictorial ‘who’s who’ of Greater Boston businesses and government” notes Daniel Lavoie, Collections Archivist at Northeastern University. “The addition of this collection and the Boston Globe archive positions Northeastern as a leading repository for the photographic history of Greater Boston.” Northeastern University Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections plan on digitizing the collection, making it a valuable asset for the Boston Research Center at Snell Library.                            

“We at FayFoto are proud of the part we have played in documenting Boston’s history, but the value of this time capsule would be lost if it stayed in boxes in our studio” Nelson remarks. “We are grateful that the conservators at Northeastern’s Snell Library agreed to undertake the significant effort required to preserve this unique resource and make it accessible to others.”