Briggs Collection of Educational Literature, pre-1850
JISC (Non Formula Funding) award (1995) for cataloguing
Dr W.G. Briggs, Director of Education in Derbyshire and member of the University Council, had assembled a substantial library of educational texts when in 1950 he presented his collection to the University Library. An endowment, and further gifts, has enabled the collection to grow to its current approximate size of over 1900 items.
Until the award of the grant in 1995, catalogue access was only possible through a typescript guide and card catalogue records. It was difficult for researchers to appreciate the extent of the richness of the collection, which ranges in date from the 17th to the 20th centuries, covers a wide range of subject materials, and includes many provincial imprints.
The project enabled the conversion of the manual records to electronic form, using the current standards for rare book cataloguing. Further details were included, enabling readers to locate illustrations and to track more accurately the complex publication history of the works. The conclusion of the project saw catalogue records fully available through the Library’s online catalogue (UNLOC).
The project concerned only the published works in the Briggs Collection, excluding the series of manuscript note books and other manuscript and ephemeral materials which are managed within the collections of Manuscripts and Archives.
The project also included a review of the physical condition of the collection, providing records which have since guided the selection of items for rebinding.
A general collection level description of the Briggs Collection provides more background information to the collection and further detail about its subject strengths.
Next project: Archdeaconry of Nottingham Conservation