The Dangerous Business of Ballooning
This highly dangerous business was accompanied by an increase in accidents and fatalities among aeronauts.
Up, Up, and Away: A History of Ballooning in America
This exhibit examines the history of balloon flight in the United States from Blanchard’s first ascension to the early twentieth century.
New Manuscript Finding Aids, May 2026
The Manuscripts Division has processed ten new collections of handwritten materials, including the 1898-99 diary of a currently unidentified soldier serving with the 31st Michigan Infantry. Everyone is welcome to conduct research at the Clements, what will you...
New Manuscript Finding Aids, April 2026
Eleven manuscript collections were made available for research this past month, including two collections graciously donated by Dan Casavant and one by Sue and Mike Jandernoa! Book Titles scrapbook, [ca. 1920s?] An unidentified compiler made this scrapbook, likely...
Collection Deep Dive: The Weld-Grimké Quilt
There are some things the written word just will not tell us, which is why we’ve always been so drawn to the material objects that get saved alongside them. The exquisite, oversized quilt that came to the Clements Library as part of an addition to the Weld-Grimké Family Papers from donor descendant Charlotte Mason in 2007 demonstrates this particularly well.
New Manuscripts Finding Aids, March 2026
This past month, 19 new manuscript finding aids were made available online. Seven of those were written by our wonderful student interns! These collections offer glimpses into the everyday lives of a farmer and a sheriff, reflections on experiences as a prisoner of war, business records, and more.
Black History in the Clements Digital Collections
The Clements Library’s digitization efforts help make our collections available for research anywhere you have an internet connection. If you’re looking to honor Black History Month with a deep dive into the archives that reflect this rich past, let us draw your attention to several online options.
New Manuscripts Finding Aids, February 2026
The Manuscripts Division has made a dozen collections available for research this past month, including a pocket diary kept during Cornelius D. Bowers’ service in the 84th Pennsylvania Volunteer Regiment and a manuscript journal penned by a currently unidentified supercargo while aboard two smuggling expeditions between August 1808 and March 1809.
New Additions to the Thomas Gage Papers Digital Collection
The Clements Library Digitization Team invites you to discover additional snapshots of history in this new selection of eighteenth century manuscripts, now accessible online through our Digitized Archival Collections.