An Acquisition Worth Noting ...

The Special Collections Division of Emory University's Robert Woodruff Library has just announced its recent acquisition of the library of Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. Its collection in 65 boxes of books, pamphlets, periodicals, and other printed matter includes some very rare items: a fine leather bound copy of A Short History of Barbados, From its First Discovery and Settlement, to ... 1767 (1768); a rare edition of Phillis Wheatley's Poems and Letters, inscribed by the famed collector Arthur A. Schomberg to Woodson; and W. C. Handy's book, Unsung Americans Sung, inscribed"To the Father of Negro History Week, From the Father of the Blues."

The important Woodson/ASAALH collection joins an increasingly rich collection of resources in African American history and African American art and imprints in the University's collections. Much of its strength is due to the remarkable work of my friend, Randall Burkett, who is just extraordinarily skillful at developing a major archive in African American material.