James P. Adams Library: Special Collections: Special Collections (A-Z)

Please Note

The following A-Z list of special collections is a work in progress, and doesn't yet represent a complete listing of our collections.

Bacon (Nathaniel Terry) Papers, MSS-0005

FINDING AID: Nathaniel Terry Bacon Papers
Papers illustrate the business and personal activities, 1876-1926, of Nathaniel Terry Bacon, a Rhode Island engineer, industrialist, philanthropist, and scholar. Includes the papers of other Bacon and Hazard family members, including Rowland Hazard, 1763-1835; Joseph Peace Hazard, 1807-1894; Thomas Rutherford Bacon, 1850-1913; Caroline Hazard, 1856-1945; Helen Hazard Bacon, 1861-1925; and Leonard Bacon, 1887-1954.

Online content:

Baxter (David) Papers -- Cape Verdean Collection, MSS-0079

Collection includes 35mm slides from photographs taken by David Baxter of Cape Verde spanning from 1980 to 1989.

Online content:

Digitized photographs in DigitalCommons@RIC and Artstor

Browne (Dr. Rose Butler) Collection, MSS-0040

Memorabilia of Dr. Rose Butler Browne (1897-1986), including awards, diplomas and certificates. Dr. Browne was an alumna of RICE, and she earned her doctoral degree in education from Harvard University in 1939. She was a renowned educator, dedicated to civil rights and improving educational opportunities for children of color.

Cardozo, (Antonio de Jesus) papers, circa 1920-1985. MSS-0080

Guide to the Antonio de Jesus Cardozo papers
Personal papers of Antonio de Jesus Cardozo, an attorney and Cape Verdean immigrant who lived in Massachusetts.

Coombs (Eva) Papers -- Cape Verdean Collection, MSS-0082

Clippings, articles and printed material on Cape Verdean history and culture collected by Eva Coombs (1924-2010). Coombs was born in New Bedford, MA to Alfred and Maria Pina. She lived in Philadelphia, PA for 35 years, where she worked for the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.

Cormack (Maribelle) Papers, MSS-0010

FINDING AID: Maribelle Cormack Papers
The papers of naturalist, teacher, and writer Maribelle Cormack include her books, manuscripts correspondence, scrapbooks, and instructional materials.

da Graça and Soares family papers, 1901-1994. MSS-0072

Guide to the da Graça and Soares family papers
The collection contains the collected papers of the da Graça and Soares family, which includes photographs that reflect the lives of a Cape Verdean family in Rhode Island in the early to mid-twentieth century.

One of the items in this collection is a handwritten cookbook by Eduardo da Graça, who emigrated from Cape Verde to the United States in 1925. He worked as a chef at the Minden Hotel in Providence, Rhode Island, and his cookbook has been digitized.

Online content:

DeCiantis (Michael) papers, circa 1900-1980. MSS-0001

Guide to the Michael DeCiantis papers
Papers of a Rhode Island lawyer and judge. A majority of the collection consists of information on Rhode Island politics, Rhode Island Family Court, and life in Rhode Island.

Edmonds family papers, 1893-2012 (bulk 1904-1964). MSS-0027

Guide to the Edmonds family papers
The collection contains the collected papers of the Edmonds family, which includes photographs and documents that reflect the day-to-day lives of a family of color in Rhode Island in the late nineteenth to mid-twentieth century.

Fain (Irving Jay) Papers, 1940-1974 (bulk 1959-1970). MSS-0003

Guide to the Irving Jay Fain papers
Papers relating to Irving Jay Fain’s concern for and activities regarding housing, civil rights, poverty, and nutrition. The collection includes materials about the Rhode Island Fair Housing Law and the National Welfare Rights Organization.

Select items relating to the Rhode Island Fair Housing Bill have been digitized and are available on Rhode Island College Digital Commons under the Irving Jay Fain papers.

Forman (Helen) papers, circa 1920-1999. MSS-0034

Guide to the Helen Forman papers
Collection of materials from a Rhode Island School of Education graduate and local teacher, Helen Forman, which contains photographs, correspondence, and memorabilia.

Gomnes (Clare) letters to Caroline DiOrio, MSS-0031

FINDING AID: Clare Gomnes letters to Caroline DiOrio
Letters written to Caroline DiOrio by Clare Gomnes, who was superintendent of the Sophia Little Home, a residence for unmarried mothers, from 1948-1955. The collection also includes a watercolor sketch of Caroline DiOrio by Clare Gomnes, as well as a few letters from Olga Gomnes and Madeleine Hoagland.

Gonsalves (Virginia Neves) Collection -- Cape Verdean Collection, MSS-0084

INVENTORY: Virginia Neves Gonsalves Collection
Collection of materials on Cape Verde and Cape Verdean Americans collected by Virginia Neves Gonsalves. Includes publications, research files, ephemera, educational and conference materials pertaining to the people, culture, history, economics and development of Cape Verde.

Gross (Dr. Carl Russell) papers, 1878-1971 (bulk 1935-1971). MSS-0002

Guide to the Dr. Carl Russell Gross papers
Papers chronicle the African American experience in Rhode Island from 1696-1971. The collection includes the research materials of African American physician Dr. Carl Russell Gross and the manuscript of his unpublished book.

Select materials from this collection have been digitized and are available online through the Rhode Island College Digital Commons.

Hunt (Dorothy) records of the Mayor’s Recreation Advisory Committee, 1944-1954. MSS-0086

Guide to the Dorothy Hunt records of the Mayor’s Recreation Advisory Committee
The Dorothy Hunt records of the Mayor’s Recreation Advisory Committee details the creation of year-round recreation programs and buildings for the youth of Providence under Providence Mayor Dennis J. Roberts. There is correspondence between Dorothy Hunt and Providence Journal reporter Dorothy Pratt regarding the implementation of the fulltime recreation program for the City of Providence’s juvenile population as well as correspondence between Hunt and James Cronin, the city’s recreation department director.

Hunt (Dorothy) and Williams (James) Urban League records, 1940-1975, (bulk 1941-1959). MSS-0008

Guide to the Dorothy Hunt and James Williams Urban League records
Papers documenting some of the programs and activities of the Urban League of Rhode Island, Inc. since its inception to 1959. Correspondence and newspaper articles regarding Black nurses and artists in Rhode Island are included. The collection also includes literature regarding the Poll Tax in the United States.

International Institute Records, MSS-0011

Documentation of the educational, legal, and social services provided by this Institute to immigrants and refugees since 1921. These materials include case records, reports, minutes, correspondence, activity records, financial records, photographs, scrapbooks, and audio recordings.

Online content:

International Longshoremen’s Association Local 1329 financial ledger, 1941. MSS-0095

Guide to the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 1329 financial ledger
Financial ledger tracking membership and dues for members of the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 1329 in 1941.

Kevorkian (Zenas) Photographs and Other Material, MSS-0042

FINDING AID: Zenas Kevorkian Photographs and Other Material, 1923-1988
Zenas Kevorkian (1910-1991) was a career educator, a United States Naval Officer during World War II, and a hobbyist photographer in Rhode Island. The bulk of this collection consists of Kevorkian’s personal photographs, which document his life, family, and community mostly in and around Providence and Cranston, Rhode Island from the 1920s through about 1960. The collection also includes correspondence while Kevorkian was in naval training in 1942, as well as publications of Providence Technical High School and Roger Williams Junior High School.

Livramento (Joseph) Papers -- Cape Verdean Collection, MSS-0060

FINDING AID: Joseph Livramento Papers
Collected papers, photographs, and memorabilia related to Cape Verde, Cape Verdean-Americans, and Cape Verdean music.

Lopes (James) Papers -- Cape Verdean Collection, MSS-0062

Collection includes postcards of Cape Verde.

Online content:

Digitized postcards in DigitalCommons@RIC and Artstor

Mariposa Collection, MSS-0025

FINDING AID: Mariposa Collection
Collected records from Mariposa, an organization that provided preschool, weekend, and after-school programs in Providence, RI from 2005-2018. Materials include administrative documents, curriculum resources, and printed materials.

Martin (Carla) Collection on Cape Verdean Language and Culture, MSS-0074

FINDING AID: Carla Martin Collection on Cape Verdean Language and Culture
This collection consists of over 300 books, along with articles and research files, sheet music, textiles, artworks, and souvenirs collected by Dr. Carla Martin, Lecturer and Assistant Director of Undergraduate Studies in Harvard University’s Department of African and African American Studies. Items are related to the topic of Cape Verdean culture, language, music, politics, history, and literature, with a wide range of disciplines from social sciences and humanities represented.

Books:

Browse in the Adams Library catalog

McGowan (Louis) Rhode Island Postcard Collection, MSS-0032

Online content:

Digitized postcards in DigitalCommons@RIC and Artstor

McLarty (Ron) Papers, MSS-0021

FINDING AID: Ron McLarty Papers
The McLarty collection includes Ron McLarty's personal papers, photographs, published and unpublished works, and memorabilia from his appearances in theater, television and film.

Online Content:

Collection dedication and digital exhibit

Muratore (Joseph) Collection, MSS-0012

An extensive collection of materials on Italian culture and the Italian-Americans of Rhode Island. It includes the personal papers and writings of Grandé Ufficalé and retired Vice Consul Joseph R. Muratore and book collections on Christopher Columbus and Italian geneaology.

Italian Genealogy Library

Online content:

Digitized newspaper columns by Joseph Muratore in DigitalCommons@RIC

Pereira (Alberto Torres) Papers -- Cape Verdean Collection, MSS-0067

Collection includes materials from the Cape Verdean Oral History Project, which began in 1972 under the auspices of the Rhode Island Department of State Library Services. It was the second program of its kind undertaken by the RIDSLS, and it was conducted by Alberto Torres Pereira, a Cape Verdean historian, linguist and writer.

Online content:

Digitized oral history interviews in DigitalCommons@RIC

Portuguese Cultural Association Records, 1959-1980. MSS-0038

Guide to the Portuguese Cultural Association records
The collection contains the collected papers of the Portuguese Cultural Association based in East Providence, Rhode Island, and includes documents and photographs that celebrate and promote Portuguese culture.

Portuguese Heritage Subcommittee records, 1971-1990, (bulk 1980-1983). MSS-0043

Guide to the Portuguese Heritage Subcommittee records
The collection contains Mariana Pierannunzi’s collected documents of the Portuguese Heritage Subcommittee which was created to celebrate and promote Portuguese culture.

Prophet (Nancy Elizabeth) Collection, 1920-2002 (bulk 1920-1960). MSS-0028

Guide to the Nancy Elizabeth Prophet collection
Collection of Rhode Island born sculptor, Nancy Elizabeth Prophet. The collection includes photographs of Prophet’s sculptures, original sketches and watercolors, and articles on her life in the United States and Paris, France.

Select materials from this collection have been digitized and are available online through DigitalCommons@RIC and Artstor..

Smolski (Chester) Photographic Slides & Publications, MSS-0041

FINDING AID: Chester Smolski Photographic Slides & Publications
This collection comprises over 10,000 slides and 370 editorial columns published in Rhode Island newspapers, spanning the 1950s through the 2000s. Materials document the studies and travels of Professor Chester Smolski, who was a Professor of Geography and Director of the Urban Studies Program at Rhode Island College.

Online content:

Digitized slides in DigitalCommons@RIC and Artstor
Digitized op-ed columns in DigitalCommons@RIC

Vendettuoli (Maurice and Vera) papers, 1964-1975 (bulk 1971-1975). MSS-0004

Guide to the Maurice and Vera Vendettuoli papers
Papers relating to the opposition of desegregated busing and the Providence Desegregation Plan in the 1970s.

Women’s Studies Organization, Feminist United, of Rhode Island College v. Rhode Island College records, 2005-2007. MSS-0088

Guide to the Women’s Studies Organization, Feminist United, of Rhode Island College v. Rhode Island College records
Records pertaining to the cause and outcome of a court case involving the Women’s Studies Organization, Feminist United, and Rhode Island College.