Students Guide to Special Collections and University Archives Research: Home

There are a few ways to ask the Special Collections and University Archives for help:

• Click on the blue rectangle at the bottom right of your browser window, titled "Chat with a Librarian"
• Email us
• Call us at (312) 996-2742 for Special Collections and University Archives at the Daley Library, or (312) 996-8977 for the Special Collections and University Archives at Library of the Health Sciences.

Currently, you can make an appointment to visit through this link, and you can also contact us via chat (click on the blue box in the lower right of your browser screen), email, or call us. Everyone is welcome to visit!

The Special Collections and University Archives Department at the Richard J. Daley Library and the Library of Health Sciences-Chicago houses collections of rare books, manuscripts, maps and photographs. Particular strengths in the collections at Daley Library are in the social, political and cultural history of Chicago. The collections at the Library of the Health Sciences-Chicago document Chicago's rich history as a center for the education and practice of the medical arts. The University Archives is the depository for historical records of the University of Illinois at Chicago. The University Archives also contains selected papers of prominent faculty, alumni, and administrative staff.

We can help you with the following research-related activities:

• Narrowing down a topic
• Suggesting resources for finding credible background information on a topic
• Coming up with effective search terms
• Finding rare books and materials

Here is a link to our UIC Special Collections and University Archives Finding Aid Search.  See How to search Special Collections and University Archives finding aids for search tips.

The Special Collections and University Archives Department at the UIC Libraries house archival records of individuals and organizations that document the political, social and cultural history of Chicago, with a focus on the 20th and 21st centuries. The strengths of the manuscript collections include the history of the Hull-House settlement; A Century of Progress World's Fair; Chicago design history; Midwest women's history; and the history of African Americans in Chicago. Collections containing information about the history of medicine can be found in the Special Collections and University Archives Department at the Library of the Health Sciences-Chicago.

• Alphabetical list of finding aids.
• Discover the history of the University of Illinois at Chicago in the University Archives.
• View historical photographs and online exhibits from UIC collections.
• Access the university's rare book collections, all searchable from the library catalog by narrowing your search to "Rare Books."
• Look at our subject libguides.