What's New In Special Collections

Staff Highlight: Welcome Summer Interns 2015

Thanks to funding from the Libraries Advisory Board, Special Collections welcomed a new 2015 summer intern cohort of UNLV graduate students this week who will be working on two important projects.

Building on the work of our summer 2014 cohort, history graduate students Kayla McDuffie, Franklin Howard, John Grygo, and Angela Moor will continue work on manuscript collection finding aids using the ArchivesSpace archival collection management system.

Their work will enable us to place many more manuscript collection guides (also known as finding aids) online, making them available to the public. Researchers will then be able to discover more of the rich historical material available in our collections.

Joseph Belmonte, a graduate student in criminal justice, will be working on the Pit…Read More

Celebrating Asian-Pacific Heritage Month: A Look at Asian-Pacific Entertainers on the Las Vegas Strip

Las Vegas Show Programs Collection MS-00333

Entertainment on the Las Vegas Strip has a rich and glamorous history .  It most commonly brings to mind images of the Rat Pack cavorting on stage in the Copa Room at the Sands Hotel or of glittering showgirls descending staircases in spectacular headdresses in elaborate production shows such as the Lido de Paris or Folies Bergere.  Perhaps less known were the contributions of performers of Asian-Pacific heritage – those of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Hawaiian, Filipino, Polynesian and Tahitian ancestry for example.

In celebration of Asian…Read More

Eadington Lecture Preview- An Enchanting Witchcraft: Masculinity, Melancholy, and the Pathology of Gaming in Early Modern London

Read more about Eadington Fellow Celeste Chamberland's research in Special Collections on gambling and addiction in 17th century London and come to the lecture "An Enchanting Witchcraft: Masculinity, Melancholy, and the Pathology of Gaming in Early Modern London" on Thursday, May 14 at 3pm in the Goldfield Room, Lied Library, UNLV campus.

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Eadington Gaming Fellow Celeste Chamberland | In Residence May 4 - May 15

Dr. Celeste Chamberland holds a copy of The Compleat Gamster from the historical gaming collection in UNLV Special Collections.

Dr. Celeste Chamberland holds a copy of Cotton's The Compleat Gamester (1680) from the historical gaming collection in UNLV Special Collections. It is protected by a specially-designed clamshell box made by UNLV Libraries Conservator Michael Frazier. 

Chamberland (Ph.D., University of California, Davis, 2004) is currently an Associate Professor of History at Roosevelt University. Specializing in early…Read More

Event Highlight: Celebrating the French Connection: May 17 Panel Discussion

Special Collections librarian, Karla Irwin, is busy installing her exhibit "The French Connection: Lido de Paris and Folies Bergere in Las Vegas" this week on the 1st floor of Lied Library. To celebrate the opening of this fabulous exhibit we will be holding a panel discussion on May 17 (2-4pm)  with long-time Folies Bergere creative director and choregrapher Jerry Jackson, and former dancers and showgirls Jillian Hrushowy, Dawnie Sachs, and Trenna Howard. Please join us!

Admission is free and the public is welcome, but please RSVP as seating is limited: https://www.library.unlv.edu/…Read More

Eadington Lecture Preview: Betting on the Triple Crown: Wagering on Papal Elections in Renaissance Rome

Eadington Fellow John Hunt has written an interesting blog post examining several 16- and 17-century Italian treatises on gaming found in UNLV Libraries Special Collections, and his upcoming lecture: "Betting on the Triple Crown: Wagering on Papal Elections in Renaissance Rome" which will take place on April 15 at 3pm in the Goldfield Room, Lied Library.

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Latest Updates from the Southern Nevada Jewish Community Digital Heritage Project

Guides to Jewish life in Southern Nevada, 1998-1999 and 2009-2010 (Jewish Federation of Las Vegas Records)

The Southern Nevada Jewish Community Digital Heritage Project has been making a lot of exciting progress collecting both oral histories and manuscript collections since it began in August 2014  If you'd like to learn more about the latest developments, check out these updates from their web site, including:

If you'd like more information or would like to contribute to the project, please contact Michelle Light, Director…Read More

Eadington Gaming Fellow John Hunt | In Residence April 2 - April 15

JOHN HUNT

Hunt (Ph. D., Ohio State University, 2009) specializes in the social and cultural history of Renaissance Italy, with a particular focus on popular culture in Papal Rome.  He has written several articles on diverse topics that include the role of public opinion on the conclave and papal election; rumors and the pope’s death; and carriages and violence.  He currently is revising his manuscript, “Violence and the Vacant See in Early Modern Rome,” for publication in late 2015.  Future projects will focus on the culture of gambling in Papal Rome.  He is an assistant professor at Read More

Spring Break in the Archives

While most people associate spring break in Las Vegas with hanging out at casino pool side cabanas, going to nightclubs or gambling, there are also folks like patrons Casey White and his grandfather Jim Heinselman who find a history field trip to UNLV Special Collections to view old photographs and maps of Las Vegas is just the ticket for a fun afternoon. #springbreakinthearchives

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Culinary Workers Union Local 226 Donates Historical Photo Collection

Special Collections was delighted to receive a significant donation of historical photographs from the Culinary Workers Union Local 226

Depicting strikes, rallies, and other Union member activities spanning several decades, the images show the Culinary Union’s dynamic role in shaping Las Vegas history over the years. This extensive collection will be curated, digitized, and preserved. A wide selection of images from the collection will be made available online for community members, students, and researchers around the world.

Read more about this historic donation…Read More

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