Once during Freshman year, while I was still getting to know the campus, I was exploring Olin library and came across the Rare and Manuscript Collections section. At the time, the doors were closed so I thought it was only accessible to people who worked in there. In my head, I had imagined some kind of temperature controlled, dimly lit security vault within the doors.

Given the opportunity to visit the section in Kroch Library, I was eager to sign up for the tour last week. Upon arrival, I was surprised to find that the Rare and Manuscript Collections actually was open to visitors, as there was a reception desk and several hallways leading to different displays.

The man leading our group on the tour, Lance, had prepared a small collection to present to us, as our time was limited and seeing the entire collection would be impossible to do in an hour. Lance had prepared different books, letters, and artifacts of varying age and significance, all of which were unique and fascinating in that each had an interesting story. However, what attracted my attention the most, was a set of architectural diagrams of Uris Library and McGraw Tower. They were the original documents, signed by the architect himself. Being a chimesmaster, I found it interesting to see every aspect of the tower I spend so much time in depicted on a set of diagrams. As I admired the architect’s work, I realized that just as I could so closely relate and be fascinated by some old papers with writing on them, each of the items that Lance had prepared, as well as all the others in the Kroch collection, could similarly inspire or teach others who could relate to certain items. I was glad to see such enthusiasm in Lance as he described each item in the small collection he had prepared.