Hours

Open 9:00 - 12:00 Noon, Monday - Friday
By Appointment, 1:30 - 5:00, Monday - Friday
Closed University holidays

Manuscripts

A regional collection of manuscripts documenting Southern Appalachian life and natural history, with particular attention to western North Carolina. The manuscripts include letters, diaries, business and financial records, legal documents, literary productions, maps, news clippings, and photographs. Specific collections may represent the activities or history of an individual, a family, or a business or organization.

Areas of collecting interest include:

1. Material documenting the history of the Cherokee Indians;
2. Material documenting the cultural and natural history of western North Carolina and Southern Appalachia;
3. Material concerning the behavior of spiders;
4. Literary works and papers of authors residing in or native to western North Carolina;
5. Materials concerning the history of Western Carolina University (previously known as Cullowhee High School, Cullowhee Normal and Industrial School, Cullowhee State Normal School, Western Carolina Teachers College, Western Carolina College). Materials include university publications and photographs.

Special Collections Books

Books which would be difficult to replace if damaged or lost. Includes materials pertaining to regional history and culture, Appalachian wilderness, and the behavior of spiders. Special Collections books do not circulate but may be used in the Special Collections reading room.

Digital Collections:

Horace Kephart: Revealing an Enigma

Throughout 2004, Hunter Library celebrated the 100 year anniversary of Horace Kephart's arrival in western North Carolina. As an extension of these events, Special Collections and the Mountain Heritage Center joined together in creating an online exhibit of Kephart's life and works. Funding for this project came through a Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant managed by North Carolina Exploring Cultural Heritage Online (NC ECHO.)

A collection of scanned images of school buildings, students, and letters in 72 and 200 dpi resolutions. The letters include verbatim transcripts. This project is 100% supported with federal LSTA funds made possible through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources.

The Cherokee Nation of Indians published the Cherokee Phoenix from 1828 to 1834. The newspaper was based at the Cherokee Nation's capital of New Echota (now part of Georgia). A bilingual newspaper, the Phoenix published articles in the English and Cherokee languages. Hunter Library's Cherokee Phoenix Project includes those English language articles that concern Cherokee and regional history. Approximately 260 issues were published under the titles Cherokee Phoenix and Cherokee Phoenix and Indians' Advocate.

Craft Revival: Shaping Western North Carolina Past and Present is a collaborative Heritage Partners grant funded by the Library Services and Technology Act. Its aim is to create a web-based digital history of the historic effort to revive handcraft in the western part of the state. The project draws from a wealth of documents, letters, photographs, oral histories, and objects that tell the story of the Craft Revival during the half century from 1895 to 1945.