SPECIAL COLLECTIONS / ARCHIVES 
DEPARTMENT POLICIES

The Special Collections/Archives Department is located on the fifth floor, Room 505. Hours of service are 8am-5pm Monday-Friday, with special assistance by appointment. Patrons should provide advanced notice to the archivist to provide time for locating relevant materials.

This department hosts a number of distinctive collections:

• RARE BOOKS, devoted primarily, although not entirely, to rare works by African-Americans;
• BLACK HERITAGE OF THE WEST, specializing in material about the American Southwest;
• BLACKS IN THE MILITARY, focusing on the contributions of African-Americans to U.S. military history;
• T. K. LAWLESS COLLECTION of materials by and about African-Americans.
• DELCO ARCHIVES of the memorabilia of former Texas State Senator Wilhelmina Delco.

A number of rare, autographed, and/or fragile books are also housed in this area, for the sake of preservation. The University Archives include official records of various campus offices, minutes of Board of Regents meetings, PVAMU publications and programs, photographs of campus buildings and activities, and older campus annuals, catalogs, yearbooks, and handbooks. A copy of each PVAMU master's thesis is also housed in this area. Additionally, the historic papers of the Interscholastic League are also housed in this area.

The collections are housed in a closed-stack area, although materials are listed in the library catalog. The archivist will assist a patron with a request. Materials may not be removed from the building, although they may be copied, with restrictions.