MARK TWAIN LIBRARY

SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

At the Mark Twain Library in Redding, Connecticut, there are three special collections worth mentioning.

The first, and most important to the town, is the Mark Twain Collection. This is comprised of two sections. The first is the collection of the original books given by Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain) to establish the first library in Redding. Only 300 titles remain from his original donation of about 3000 books, some of them with marginalia written in his hand. These books are not for loan. The second part of this collection contains over 150 books on or about Mark Twain, including biographies, essays, humor, notebooks, and literary criticisms. These books may be borrowed.

The second collection is the Massie Collection that was donated by Reginald Massie, a former Georgetown, Connecticut resident. It contains over 150 books about the Civil War, and about 300 books on art. The Civil War Collection includes biographies, individual battles, diaries, and analyses. There are multiple volume sets by Sandburg, Commager, Freemen, Catton, and Dowdy, as well as pictorial presentations by Matthew Brady. The art collection is a mixture of American, European and Oriental art, plus the history of art. All these books may be borrowed.

The third collection is the Hutchinson Collection which is a collection of some 1,500 books representing a lifetime interest on the part of Hester LaGallienne Hutchinson, and given to the library by her husband, Robert, after her death. The collection consists of material on Eastern religions, beliefs and customs of ancient Egypt, and books on Islam, philosophy, yoga, theosophy, and the occult. Translations of sacred books are well represented. All these are available for loan.