About Us
Special Collections and University Archives is the home of CSU Long Beach's rare book and manuscript collections, as well as its University Archives collections. Archival and manuscript collections can consist of different kinds of materials, including correspondence, diaries, maps, university records, organizational records, photographs, and audio or video recordings.
In Special Collections and University Archives, users can perform research, engage in classes using primary sources, or view exhibits. Our collections are made available to researchers in a supervised reading room. We welcome users, and ask for understanding concerning our special procedures, which are designed to ensure these collections are available in the future.
Special Collections and University Archives is open to students, faculty, staff, and the community. Email us with any questions you have: LIB-Archives@csulb.edu.
*Thank you to photographer William Liang for the images in our banner*
Special Collections and University Archives collects, organizes, preserves, and makes accessible California State University, Long Beach’s rare books and archival collections for use by current and future researchers. These unique interdisciplinary collections center around themes relevant to the mission of the university and the history of the region of Long Beach. A key part of our mission is to engage researchers of all levels and promote learning, discovery, and scholarship.
Special Collections includes rare and valuable publications such as first editions, limited editions, autographed copies, and miniatures. The collections also include Fine Art prints, Fine Art Photography prints, artifacts, memorabilia, significant papers/correspondence, and Oral Histories on a variety of topics. Most of the rare book titles are included in the library catalog and may be requested and read in the Special Collections Reading Room by appointment.
University Archives serves as a repository for materials documenting the history of California State University, Long Beach and includes retrospective campus publications such as newsletters, catalogs, syllabi, photographs, student newspapers and magazines (the Daily Forty-Niner, DIG magazine, 22 West Magazine), campus yearbooks, files of past university presidential administrations, as well as thousands of reports and other papers documenting policies and personalities of the institution.
The core materials found in Special Collections were acquired with the interest and support of the founding library director, Charles J. Boorkman, reflecting his love of rare books and fine art. Initiated by campus president Stephen Horn (president from 1970-1988), the University Archives was established in 1977.
The early collections of material included early California history, selections of pamphlets from the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, regional and small press poetry magazines, over 400 prints by artists such as Chagall, Goya, and Toulouse-Lautrec, the photography collection of West Coast photographers such as Ansel Adams, Edward Weston and over 40 others, and more.
The department evolved throughout the years to include a large number of Oral Histories, historical University records, collections on local politicians and musicians, and books or materials related to our campus community interests and classes.
We are currently working on processing old and new collections of material to make them easily searchable and accessible to the community.
Q: I am a professor/lecturer at CSULB. How do I set up a class visit for my students?
A: Please contact chloe.pascual@csulb.edu or (562) 985-1895 to set up a consultation for a class visit. You can discuss your interests and needs with Chloé to figure out the best use of your class visit to the department.
Q: How do I request an old syllabus from a class I took?
A: Review the University Archives Syllabus Collection page for information. Please email LIB-Archives@csulb.edu with your request. Please include your phone number, the year and semester you took the classes, and the department names and course numbers of the classes you need. Keep in mind that we do not receive every syllabus from every semester. We will do our best to find something that will work for you.
Q: I need information/course descriptions from an old campus catalog. Can you help?
A: We are in the process of scanning old campus catalogs. You can find scanned catalogs at this website: Archived CSULB Catalogs/Bulletins New catalogs are added regularly. If the one you need is not online yet, contact LIB-Archives@csulb.edu to request scans from it.
Q: I am an office/department/club/etc. on campus. Can I submit our archives to the University Archives?
A: Please give us a call at 562-985-4087 or email at LIB-Archives@csulb.edu to discuss what you would like to donate. Our goal is to maintain records that document the history of our campus. We cannot accept every memo your department has ever created (or every framed photo of the pyramid!), but we do want materials that will help our campus community understand the changes our campus has gone through over the years.
Q: Do you have photos/documents/records of my department/club/professors?
A: We might! Keep in mind, our collections are based on what we were given by our campus community. Sometimes we have a lot related to your request, or sometimes we only have one or two items. Email us at LIB-Archives@csulb.edu and we can check for you!
Heather Steele Gajewski - Special Collections & University Archives Coordinator and Archivist
562-985-1580
heather.steele@csulb.edu
Chloé Pascual - History, Special Collections and Archives Librarian
562-985-1895
chloe.pascual@csulb.edu
Student Assistants
Fabiola A.
Arianna Z.
Diego H.
