The McWhiney Collection of books, periodicals, reference materials, recordings,
correspondence, and archival material derives from the personal library
of the late Dr. H. Grady McWhiney, one of the most distinguished Southern
historians of the second half of the 20th Century. Recently-published materials
keep the Collection up to date. The Collection is accessible to the public
primarily for academic study and historical research.
In keeping with its namesake’s special interests, the Collection centers
around (1) the American Civil War, (2) Southern history, and (3) Celtic
history. It also has strong holdings in the areas of (4) American military
history and (5) Central West Texas studies. Civil War holdings include,
among many other items, the Papers of the Southern Historical Society (49
volumes), the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion (159 volumes),
and the Confederate Veteran Magazine (40 volumes); plus a substantial collection
of important primary works donated by the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
A final category is (6) Country and Western music, as found in Dr. McWhiney’s
very extensive collection of recordings. The Collection is unique in West
Texas in the extent of its holdings in these special areas of interest.
By focusing on these six categories, the Collection complements the more
general historical holdings featured in the libraries of the Abilene Library
Consortium, namely those at the Abilene Public Library, Abilene Christian University,
Hardin-Simmons University, Howard Payne University, and McMurry University,
which hosts the McWhiney Collection in its Jay-Rollins Library building.
Current policy restricts the use of the materials in the Collection to
the site, not to restrict or impede research, but in order to preserve
the Collection for future users. Much of the Collection is searchable online
via the Abilene Library Consortium database and through an index of materials
in the Collection office.
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Hours of Operation
2:00-5:00 Monday through Friday; other times by appointment (contact Joe Specht, the Collection Manager, at least 48 hours in advance).
Online Collection Database
Jay-Rollins Library, McMurry University
Contact
Joe Specht, Collection Manager
(325) 793-4697
Fax: (325) 572-3991
Email: jspecht@mcm.edu
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