Access and Use Special Collections Materials

Your Special Collections Account facilitates your access to rare books, manuscripts, and archives held in Special Collections at The Claremont Colleges Library and Ella Strong Denison Library at Scripps College.

• Submit requests to view items onsite.
• Submit requests for scans in accordance with copyright guidelines.
• Track the status of your requests.
• Access information about past requests.
• Collaboratively select materials for group projects, classes, and exhibits using the activities feature.
• Claremont Colleges students, faculty, and staff can access their account using their CAS credentials. All researchers outside of The Claremont Colleges can login using the “Other Researchers” login option.

Questions about your account? Ask Special Collections.

The Special Collections Reading Room is on the second floor of The Claremont Colleges Library, inside the North entrance. To use it:

• Schedule an appointment and request materials at least 24 hours in advance.
• Bring a laptop, camera, paper, and pencil. A rare book scanner is available with staff permission.

Reading Room Policies:

• Store bags on provided shelves.
• Handle materials with care, using only pencils (provided if needed).
• Work with one item at a time, keeping folders flat and using cradles and weights for books.
• Turn pages gently and keep loose items in their original order.
• Report any damage or unopened pages.
• Wear cotton gloves when handling fragile items like photographs or medieval manuscripts, as directed by staff.
• No food, drinks, or water bottles are allowed in the reading room.

Anyone can make a research consultation with our knowledgeable Special Collections staff. If none of the available times work for you, please contact us to find an alternative.

Special Collections offers copy, scanning, and photography services to promote access to rare and unique materials for your research and teaching needs.

• Make your own digital copies at no cost in the Reading Room using:
  • Non-flash photography with phones, personal devices, and cameras–with permission.
  • A high-quality rare book scanner, available, first come-first served, in the Reading Room.
• Make requests for scans or copies through your Special Collections Account. Details for how to place a request can be found in the Special Collections Access Guide.
  • Enter the item details, desired file type, delivery method, and service level.
  • Once we receive your request, our staff will perform a page count and send you an invoice, which can be paid by credit or debit card. After the invoice is paid, the materials are scanned and uploaded to your Special Collections account.
  • See Formats & Fees below pricing.

Please review the Copyright & Permissions information below before making your request. We reserve the right to limit the number of copies made; to restrict the use or copying of rare, valuable, or fragile items; and to deny a request because of copyright regulations, privacy rights, donor-imposed regulations, or other rights related issues.

If you are looking for materials that have already been digitized, we encourage you to browse our digital collections as well as other online digital repositories such as Calisphere and the Library of Congress Digital Collections.

If you have questions, please contact us at specialcollections@claremont.edu or Ask Special Collections.

The copyright law of the United States (Title 17 United States Code) governs the making of reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a researcher uses a reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that researcher may be liable for copyright infringement.]

• Special Collections welcomes you to use materials in our collections that are in the public domain and to make fair use of copyrighted materials as defined by copyright law. When you use our materials in your work, please cite the institutional repository.
• Users of Special Collections are expected to abide by all copyright laws.
• Special Collections can grant permission to publish only for those materials for which we retain copyright.
  • For all other materials, researchers must obtain copyright clearance from the copyright holder(s).
• Special Collections is not responsible for the misuse of copyrighted material.
• Special Collections reserves the right to refuse a copying order if, in its judgment, it would involve violation of copyright law.

• To determine whether the material you wish to publish is in the public domain or not, see
  • the Library Copyright Slider (American Library Association Copyright Advisory Network)
  • the Copyright Genie (American Library Association Copyright Advisory Network)
  • the WATCH File and FOB provide information for contacting literary copyright holders and other publishing concerns.

Permissions

Request permission to publish (if Special Collections owns copyright) by contacting us at specialcollections@claremont.edu. Please use the tools above and the Library’s Copyright & Fair Use page to determine the copyright or public domain status of an item to see if your use requires permissions.

The Claremont Colleges Library Special Collections offers one research fellowship opportunity. The Roland Jackson Memorial Music Research Fellowship is open to researchers pursuing a project, the main subject focus of which is represented in the Roland Jackson Collection–performance practice, early music, 19th-century music, film music, and computer music studies–and whose research would benefit from on-site access to materials housed in Special Collections. Applications are not being accepted at this time, but for more information and how to apply:  Roland Jackson Memorial Music Research Fellowship