Special Collections News

Residents of Sandersville and the surrounding community are invited to drop off their old home movies so they can be brought into the modern era, thanks to the work of archivists from the Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection, a special collections unit of the University of Georgia Libraries.

The “Free the Tapes” project is headed to the east central Georgia area after three successful rounds in Athens, which has resulted in the digitization of more than 500 family films.

James Brown’s eel skin boots have been replaced by Little Richard’s iconic silver lamé cape in a rotating display of Georgia musical greats curated by the University of Georgia Special Collections Libraries. 

The change comes as part of an annual rotation at the Georgia Music Collections exhibit at Akins Ford Arena, part of the Classic Center in Athens, which opened last year.  

Due to winter weather conditions, the UGA Main Library and McBay Science Library will be closed on Saturday, January 31. The Miller Learning Center will be open from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. 

All three locations plan to reopen on a delayed schedule of 1 p.m. on Sunday, February 1. We encourage patrons to follow our Instagram page for updates before planning a trip throughout the weekend.

Updates on other campus facilities will be posted by their respective units, in accordance with UGA's weather announcement.

UGA Libraries and MLC locations will be closed due to the winter weather situation through Monday, Jan. 26. Locations reopen on Tuesday, Jan. 27 with a delayed time of 12:00 noon.

As stated in the latest University of Georgia update, the Miller Learning Center and Main and McBay Libraries will be closed Saturday, Jan. 24 through Monday, Jan. 26

UGA officials updated the community early Monday afternoon sharing the delayed opening plan for Tuesday, January 27 at 12 noon. Staff should report at 12 noon, and classes resume at 1:15 pm. Regular closing hours for library locations are not impacted for Tuesday.

This article appears on UGA Today.

Muhammed Ali’s lighting of the Olympic cauldron in 1996 signaled the beginning of the Olympic Games — at the same moment, it launched Atlanta to the international stage. Thirty years later, a new exhibit at the University of Georgia Richard B. Russell Building Special Collections Libraries looks back on the formative moment in Georgia history and the marathon of preparations leading up to the opening ceremony that would secure the city’s future.

Researchers can now use a modernized search tool to find unique materials preserved at the University of Georgia Special Collections Libraries (SCL).

The updated technology allows for easier location of materials from hand-written journals, letters, and business ledgers, textiles, political papers, and other unique items from the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library and the Russell Library for Political Research and Studies. (A separate search tool is in place for the Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection, the third unit comprising the UGA Special Collections Libraries.)

The revamped search tool known as SCLFind allows for more detailed descriptions and filtering of results, allowing researchers more insight into their searches.

To search for special collections materials, visit libs.uga.edu/scl/research/collections

T. Rogers Wade, distinguished University of Georgia alumnus, civic leader and longtime supporter of the UGA Libraries, died Dec. 7, leaving a lasting legacy marked by public service, philanthropy and leadership across the state.

This article appears on UGA Today

Alumnus, businessman and civic leader T. Rogers Wade has been named the 2025 recipient of the Dooley Friends of the UGA Libraries Award at the University of Georgia, an honor dedicated to the legacy of academic support from legendary Bulldog football coach Vince Dooley and his wife, Barbara.

Graduate students are invited to apply for a fellowship to perform research at one of the most ecologically and historically significant sites in Georgia — the Center for Research and Education at Wormsloe (CREW).

Nominations are open for the Wormsloe Fellowship, which provides support and funding for master’s or doctoral student research on a wide variety of topics related to the human and natural history of the coastal Georgia property. Funding is provided by the UGA Graduate School and the Wormsloe Foundation. 

The interdisciplinary research center, which is administered by UGA Libraries, supports the work of students and faculty who investigate a host of questions in a broad range of disciplines, including ecology, archaeology, history, geology, landscape architecture, historic preservation, environmental planning.

The first major biography in 20 years on Jeannette Rankin, written by historian Lorissa Rinehart, was released on Election Day 2025. Winning the Earthquake (St. Martin’s Press, November 2025) reintroduces Rankin, the national icon and longtime Georgia resident, who defied all odds to be elected the first woman to serve in the U.S. Congress.

On Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 3 p.m., the annual Jeannette Rankin Legacy Lecture held at the Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies at the University of Georgia will feature a conversation with Rinehart discussing Rankin’s legacy and how her fearless leadership shaped the women’s rights and peace movements of the 20th century. Winning the Earthquake will be for sale at the event, and Rinehart will be signing copies.