WKU Libraries: Special Collections

Located in the Raymond Cravens Library @WKU, we hold research materials on Kentucky history, culture, folklore, genealogy, WKU history and more!

[The Kentucky Museum @TheKYMuseum]

Opening today! Celebrate 15 years of WKU's amazing university photographer, Clinton Lewis, in his self-curated "The Lewis Lens." Familiar faces and far-off places - plus a few surprises - honor Clinton's hard work and adventurous spirit.

@wku @wkuherald @caboni

[The Kentucky Museum @TheKYMuseum]

Congrats, #WKU graduates!

Stop in and take your picture with LEGO Big Red today or tomorrow. We are open 9am to 4pm.

[The Kentucky Museum @TheKYMuseum]

We are thrilled to announce that ServiceOne Credit Union will sponsor our Duncan Hines: A Food Odyssey talk and a special event for the first 100 visitors during Duncan Hines Days! Save the date for Jonathan's program on June 4, and stay tuned for more details.

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

The naming of the Bowling Green Veterans Center after the late Col. Robert E. Spiller is a well-deserved honor. Bob and Cora Jane were great friends of @WKUSPCOL and we miss them. Here's Bob with two lovely belles at a Riverview@Hobson Grove event!

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

Facing impeachment over financial scandals and his too-cozy relationship with President Lyndon Johnson, Supreme Court Justice Abe Fortas resigned in 1969. While the controversy dragged on, #WKU alum Bill "Whitey" Sanders drew this cartoon for the Milwaukee Journal. #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

The tradition began with Duncan Hines Week in Nov. 1986, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the publication of "Adventures in Good Eating." Here's the first edition. It sold 5,000 copies and lost money, but word of mouth soon made it an institution! #WKUSPCOL @duncanhinesdays

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

#OTD in 1945, Capt. Harry Jackson of Warren County, Ky., on active duty in Germany, asked the Army's permission to marry Frances Perret, an American living in Paris. The nuptials never took place, but it's an intriguing item in our excellent collection of his papers. #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

We mourn the passing at 100 years young of Harriet Downing, wife of #WKU's fourth president, Dero Downing. Here's Bob Coffey's sweet photo of Harriet, Dero, and their new granddaughter, Harriet Elaine. #WKUSPCOL

[The Kentucky Museum @TheKYMuseum]

RESCHEDULED
Out of an abundance of caution, the Awards Ceremony has been rescheduled for Friday, March 10 from 6 to 8 pm.

@AboundCU @WKUPcal @wkuherald @wkuart

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

Issued #OTD in 1842, a finding of citizens of Leesburg, Ky. regarding mysterious hair growth on the thumb of young Penelope Stout. Despite intense public curiosity, she escaped suspicion of witchcraft. More at: https://t.co/cR5JScywbW #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

Bowling Green pharmacist recommended? Kendall's Spavin Cure was intended for horses with sore ankle joints, but found a human following because it was loaded with opium. Its creator's addiction, and the Pure Food & Drug Act of 1906, eventually ended the quackery. #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

Glasgow, Ky. native Ted Page (1903-84) played outfield for 5 teams in the Negro Leagues, including the 1931 Homestead (PA) Grays, who had a 136-17 record. Before injury shortened his career, Page was said to outrun even the speedy "Cool Papa" Bell. #WKUSPCOL #BlackHistoryMonth

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

In the company of parents Henry and Pearl Smith, brother Greg, and the rest of his family, Dwight Smith (3rd from left) signed to play basketball at #WKU in 1963. The Hilltopper great's jersey will be retired at the game on February 4.@WKUBasketball #WKUSPCOL

[The Kentucky Museum @TheKYMuseum]

What's New at the Kentucky Museum - https://t.co/n3FRP2A0Uv

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

William Temple's collection of Kentucky governors' autographs includes this one from Augustus E. Willson (1907-11), regretting his inability to succeed himself. The state constitution now allows a 2nd term, then 4 years of ineligibility before another try. #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

If you looked down College Street in 1894 from Cherry Hall (which, of course, wasn't built until 1937), this is what you would have seen of Bowling Green. From "Picturesque Bowling Green," a booklet boosting the city and its amenities. #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

#WKU's Special Collections Library will be closed December 16 through January 2 for the Christmas Break. We reopen January 3, 2023. Happy Holidays! #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

During World War II, these small Christmas greeting cards from President Franklin D. Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt departed slightly from traditional phrasing and wished Americans a "Happier" New Year. #WKUSPCOL

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

The first College Heights Herald issued after Pearl Harbor reported on #WKU President Paul Garrett's message to students: be ready to serve, as you'll be called when needed. In the meantime, your college training will help you lead in a postwar world. #WKUSPCOL #PearlHarbor

[WKU Libraries: Special Collections @WKUSPCOL]

We've all heard of poll taxes, but scholars have also investigated the structural racism inherent in the assessment of property taxes. Here's an 1891 tax receipt from Warren County, Ky. that identifies the owner as "colored." #WKUSPCOL