The University of Tulsa McFarlin Library Department of Special Collections and University Archives consists of materials that have been donated or purchased throughout the department's history. These materials reflect the broad scope of research interests among students and faculty.
This page contains information for those interested in donating items to McFarlin Special Collections. Due to the size of our existing collections, we are glad to selectively accept materials that enhance our collection strengths and support the curricular and research needs of our students, faculty, the local community, and scholars around the world.
A signed copy of our Deed of Gift is necessary for full accession of materials into Special Collections.
Please review the Collection Development Policy document on this page and contact the Director of Special Collections at melissa-kunz@utulsa.edu to discuss your potential donation before sending materials to McFarlin Library.
Special Collections staff are unable to give appraisals or make any statements regarding the dollar value of an item.
We advise anyone seeking a tax deduction for their donation to speak with a qualified professional appraiser who is experienced in the subject matter and type of materials that will be donated. Here is a list of organizations where you can find an appraiser by specialization and location:
For more information about how the IRS handles tax deductions, including limits and valuations, visit www.irs.gov and search for Form 8283.
The following are some of the aspects that Special Collections staff take into consideration when reviewing a potential donation:
This list gives a general sense of the types of collections found in McFarlin Special Collections. For more detailed information about what we are actively collecting and not currently collecting, please view the Collection Development Policy PDF.
Historical records of The University of Tulsa and Henry Kendall College. This also includes non-active records of a historical value, photographs, scrapbooks, etc. University memorabilia, including Kendallabrum yearbooks, should be sent to the Heritage Collection.
Please note that student records, grades, confirmation of attendance at The University of Tulsa, etc., are maintained by the Bursar's Office.
Performing arts, graphic arts, the book as art, books with fore-edge paintings, etc.
History and literature of the American West, with an emphasis on Western Expansion.
British, Irish, and American literature, with particular emphasis on Modernist and Contemporary literature, as well as Post-Colonialism, Women's Literature, and Radical Thought.
History of the Book, Artists' Books, hand-pressed books, fore-edge painted books, the Andre Deutsch archive, the PEN Archive, the Martin Secker Collection, the Rupert Hart-Davis Collection, incunabula and medieval manuscripts.
Particularly related to James Joyce and his contemporaries like Harriet Shaw Weaver, Paul and Lucie Léon, Rebecca West, Robert Graves, Siegfried Sassoon, and many others.
Primarily pertaining to tribes and nations in the Oklahoma region.
Materials related to Statehood and the Tulsa Race Massacre.
Sherlock Holmesiana, pataphysics and Surrealism, dime novels, science fiction, pulp magazines, boys' adventure novels, historical household manuals, manuscript cookbooks.
The International Petroleum Exposition, photographic collections, materials from Edgar Fitch Bullard, the Midwest Refining Company, and Frank Galbreath.
World War I, the Vietnam Conflict, trench maps, propaganda posters.
Nineteenth Century Women's Literature Collection, Stevie Smith, Anna Kavan, Edith Nesbit, Jean Rhys, Muriel Spark, Rebecca West.
