Tulane University's
Louisiana Research Collection

Tulane University’s Louisiana Research Collection is pleased to announce that the Joel Fletcher papers are now open to the public. Joel Fletcher, author of the book Ken and Thelma , donated his papers to Tulane University in 2006. Joel Fletcher was a friend of John Kennedy Toole, author of A Confederacy of Dunces and Thelma Ducoing Toole, John’s mother. The papers consist of Joel Fletcher’s research files for Ken and Thelma , a book about his friendship with Ken and Thelma Toole, and how A Confederacy of Dunces came to be published. The collection contains correspondence, drafts, reviews, and supporting materials. The collection contains criticism on previous biographies of John Kennedy Toole, and Fletcher’s letters with Thelma Ducoing Toole, New Orleans author Poppy Z. Brite, University of New Orleans professor Kenneth Holditch, and friends of the Toole family. The Louisiana Research Collection at Tulane University’s Special Collections Library also has the papers o...

Howard-Tilton Memorial Library will host and co-sponsor a two-day Society of American Archivists workshop, Understanding Photographs, Introduction to Archival Principles and Practices. This will be held Nov. 5-6, 2009. From the workshop description: While photographs are some of the most versatile and heavily-used resources in archives, many professionals lack any specialized training in how to deal with them effectively. This introductory workshop teaches the basics of how to manage and care for photographs. You will discover how standard archival techniques can be applied successfully to photographs in eight modules: appraising and acquiring; reading and researching; identification and handling; preservation, storage and housing; accessioning and arrangement; description and cataloging; copying; and public service and outreach . Leon C. Miller, Head of LaRC, has made arrangements for us to host this workshop and another one early in 2010 on Encoded Archival Description. Please note t...

Every summer, we are fortunate to have several student workers on board with us. This summer, we also had two interns. Our student workers and interns are some of our greatest assets, and much of the work we do would not happen without their dedication (and willingness to humor our staff). We'd like to highlight some of their work as the fall semester begins. Caity Mellicant is a graduate student of linguistics. Her areas of interest are currently bilingualism and language contact with a focus on East Asian languages. Caity has been a student worker at Special Collections for a few years. This summer, she scanned several volumes of the Favrot family paper transcriptions for digitization. Kevin Fontenot is a PhD candidate finishing his dissertation, a biography on former Governor Jimmie Davis. This summer, Kevin processed the papers of Tulane professor Karlem "Ducky" Riess, author Joel Fletcher, and some letters from Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard. Kevin has...

Notes on slideshow images: Images are from the Louisiana Research Collection’s manuscripts collections, vertical file, portrait file, and image file, and include the following: Art Silverman creating sculpture models, Arthur "Art" Silverman papers; 1950s New Orleans high school gym class, Jane P. Walsh photograph collection; Genevieve Pitot and Joe Sullivan, Genevieve Pitot collection; The first word—Ma-ma!, page from John Kennedy Toole’s baby book, John Kennedy Toole papers; 433 First, brick doubles, from Irish Channel architectural survey, 1974-1976; Tennis players, New Orleans Lawn Tennis Club records; Site of new electrical bay--demolition of old structure, July 17, 1926, Phoenix Utility Company collection; Achille Peretti, 1918, Swiss Society of New Orleans records; Natalie Scott, Natalie Scott papers; Roark Bradford and his Saint Bernard, Nemo, Roark Bradford papers; early passenger bus, Teche Lines records; Mary Alma Riess, c. 1938, 17 Audubon Blvd., New Orleans, John ...

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin proclaimed a few days ago that “the time for vigils is past.” But as we rebuild and more fully recover, individuals and communities in Louisiana and throughout the Gulf Coast will continue to observe August 29th as a memorial day for our personal and collective losses. One way to mark the time of year would be to open up one of those books you bought, or maybe read a new one, available in Tulane’s libraries. This is a very brief selection of the Katrina-related books in the Louisiana Research Collection. Spoiled : refrigerators of New Orleans go outside in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. And they have things to say / by Tom Varisco. Location: JONES HALL Louisiana Collection Call Number: F379.N545 V37 2005 Notes: Signed by the author Overcoming Katrina : African American voices from the Crescent City and beyond / [edited by] D'Ann R. Penner and Keith C. Ferdinand ; foreword by Jimmy Carter. Location: JONES HALL Louisiana Collection Call Number: F...

The thousands of manuscript collections in Jones Hall may seem mysterious and remote, but we’re in the process of making them more discoverable, both to on-campus users and to researchers across the world. Many of our unique items will be digitized for preservation and widespread access. Detailed inventories of the collections are being more fully written, scanned, and made accessible on the internet. Collections are being methodically cataloged for inclusion in WorldCat and the Howard-Tilton catalog. Within the catalog, keyword searching may be the primary method being used by many students. However, it’s important to know that the traditional Library of Congress subject headings are being assigned to the collections as they are cataloged, just as they are for books, serials, and holdings in all formats. These headings provide another powerful technique of discovering the fascinating contents of the Louisiana Research Collection, and pulling together sources of various types. A new se...

For those of you who follow our Twitter account, you may have wondered about this symbol we use. The frog is an image from the Mystick Krewe of Comus' 1873 "Missing Links" parade costume designs. The Missing Links parade was an important event in New Orleans' Mardi Gras history, becoming one of the first major instances of the use of satire and political commentary in a krewe parade. The "Missing Links" referred to the work of Charles Darwin, and the parade not only sent up the theory of evolution, but other topics of the day including Reconstruction. Tulane's Louisiana Research Collection has a complete set of the Missing Links costume designs. They are an important part of preserving the history of Carnival in New Orleans. We are currently making high quality digital copies of the designs, and plan to put together a digital collection of them later this year. (Image from Mystick Krewe of Comus' 1873 Missing Links Parade Costume Designs, Collection...