Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Gallery
Bronze Plaques from the Signature Gallery
Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library
The Hargrett Library advances the research, instructional, and service missions of the University of
Georgia by collecting, preserving, and sharing the published and unpublished works that document the
history and culture of our state.
Among the Hargrett’s holdings is the Georgiana collection, the most complete assemblage of published
works by Georgians and about Georgia, and a distinguished collection of rare books, maps, and
broadsides featuring material from the De Rennes and Felix Hargrett. The Library holds millions of
original manuscripts and images, the raw material of history. Hargrett also contains the University of
Georgia Archives, which secures the institutional memory of America’s first state-chartered university.
The Hargrett is home to the Georgia Writer’s Hall of Fame, celebrating the achievements of Georgia
writers and promoting the state’s literary heritage.
The Georgia colony was established in part as a great philanthropic experiment designed to provide
opportunity for those whose economic progress had been hampered in England. The colony benefited
from private donations and received guidance from a public minded Board of Trustees whose motto was
“Non sibi, Sed Allis” not for ourselves, but for others.
Likewise, the Hargrett relies on the philanthropy of individuals and organizations across Georgia and the
nation that have contributed collections and financial support to build the most extensive library of
Georgia-related rare books and manuscripts in existence.
It is through such generosity that the Hargrett also has established centers of study in other areas,
including natural history, women’s history, performing arts and print journalism.
A Library on the Frontier
When the Wymberley Jones DeRenne Georgia Library arrived in Athens in 1938, it became part of one of
the first publicly supported academic libraries in the nation.
In 1785, Georgia became the first state to charter a publicly supported University. From inception, the
founders of the University of Georgia envisioned a Library as an essential part of their educational
experiment near the remote headwaters of the Oconee River on the Georgia Frontier. The University’s
first structure was a rudimentary log building, the upper half of which housed UGA’s earliest Library.
The nascent collection held works to aid instruction in areas such as classics, mathematics, natural and
moral philosophy, and the laws of nature and nations. The library also held books on history, literature
and geography and other subjects “for the use of Students at intervals when not engaged in the
academical studies.” Through the nineteenth century, the University added to its collections, moved
them to new quarters, and the Demosthenian and Phi Kappa Literary societies supplemented the
University’s holdings by establishing their own libraries.
From this modest beginning emerged a library system that two hundred years later would hold more
than four and a half million volumes, offer some of the nation’s most extensive and distinguished special
collections, and become an early pioneer in providing digital services to the University and across the
state.
The Hargrett Library has its roots in the University’s first libraries, and the Hargrett continues the UGA
Libraries’ long tradition of advancing the educational mission of the University of Georgia and serving as
a cultural resource for the people of our state.
The De Rennes of Georgia
The De Renne family crest on the gallery floor is a reproduction of the original mosaic tile coat of arms
laid in the De Renne Library at Wormsloe on the Isle of Hope near Savannah. The building held a
collection that, at the time of its acquisition by the University of Georgia in 1938, was the largest and
most important assemblage of books and manuscripts relating to the history of Georgia as colony and
state.
The Library is the product of a family whose patriarch, Noble Jones (1723-1805), came to Georgia with
James Oglethorpe in 1733. Jones’ great-grandson, George Wymberley Jones De Renne (1827-1880)
amassed a large and important library, and by 1847 his section on Georgia history was considered
superior to all other such private collections. Unfortunately, the books and papers from this first De
Renne Library were destroyed or plundered during the final years of the Civil War.
The present collection is largely a result of many years of effort by G.W.J. De Renne’s eldest son,
Wymberley Jones De Renne (1853-1916), whose library greatly exceeded that of his father. W.J. De
Renne’s Georgia Library eventually encompassed approximately 10,000 items dated 1700-1931; and he
constructed a classical fireproof library building for the collection at Wormsloe in 1907. The De Rennes
owned the original permanent Confederate Constitution acquired by W.J. De Renne’s mother Mary
Nuttall De Renne. His daughters, Elfrida De Renne Barrow and Audrey De Renne Howland, funded the
publication of a 1931 three volume catalogue of the De Renne Library.
It had been W.J. DeRenne’s wish that his library one day come to the University of Georgia, a wish
fulfilled in 1938 then the family executed its sale to the University. W.J. Derenne’s son, Wymberley
Wormsloe De Renne, relocated to Athens where he served as the librarian for the De Renne collections
through 1956.
The legacy of the De Rennes and the Barrow family continue through the work of the Wormsloe
Foundation, incorporated by Elfrida De Renne Barrow in 1953.
Felix Hargrett 1902-1988
“I have never sold a book. But I have given away a great many.” -- Felix Hargrett
In 1986, the University of Georgia Libraries reconstituted its collections of rare books and Georgiana,
along with its historical manuscripts as the “Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library” in recognition
of the generous philanthropy of businessman and bibliophile, Felix Hargrett.
Tifton native Felix Hargrett earned a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from the University
of Georgia in 1924 and pursued a successful career in the fire insurance and rate-making industry. An
ardent collector of books, Mr. Hargrett assembled an extensive library of rare books and manuscripts.
His collections of Georgia history and literature and of confederate imprints were the largest in private
ownership when he presented them to the University of Georgia where they, along with the De Renne
Library, form the nucleus of the Hargrett Library’s rare book collection.
Former UGA librarian Porter Kellum wrote that Mr. Hargrett “travelled to countless Southern towns
visiting book stores, descendants of famous political figures, lawyers’ offices, courthouses – anywhere
and everywhere he could locate pieces of Southern Americana, his enduring love.”
Mr. Hargrett donated 12,000 books and 10,000 historical manuscripts to the University incalculably
strengthening the Library’s collections, and he expressed the hope that other friends and alumni would
do likewise.
In addition to his gifts of books, Mr. Hargrett established two funds to endow the Hargrett Library,
providing annually for the purchase of rare books and manuscripts.
In 1964 Mr. Hargrett received an Alumni Award of Merit, the highest honor accorded to a UGA alumnus,
and in 1969 he was elected a trustee of the University of Georgia Foundation. Mr. Hargrett was a
director and life member of the State Botanical Garden, which he helped to establish.
Felix Hargrett was married to Sally Barksdale Hargrett (1900-1974).
The Freddy Wittop Center for the Study of Performing Arts
The Freddy Wittop Center for the Study of Performing Arts was established to honor the work and
lifetime achievement of internationally acclaimed costume designer, Freddy Wittop (1911-2001). In a
career that spanned over seventy prolific years, Freddy Wittop created an astonishing variety of original
designs for Broadway musicals including Happy Time; A Patriot for Me; The Roar of the Greasepaint –
the Smell of the Crowd; Lovely Ladies; Kind Gentlemen; I Do! I Do; and his Tony Award winning Hello
Dolly! Wittop also designed costumes for Ballet, Opera, The Ice Capades, Holiday on Ice, The Latin
Quarter, Folies-Bergere and the costumes for his own Spanish dance career.
The Freddy Wittop Center for the Study of Performing Arts collects a variety of materials from all time
periods reflecting all areas of the theater and performing arts such as original costume and set designs,
manuscripts, correspondence, photographs, engravings, portraits, playbills and programs, sheet music,
scripts, scrapbooks, memorabilia and artifacts, props, and costumes. Printed book, journals, periodicals,
posters and broadsides are acquired with special emphasis on the history of the theater and history of
costume.
The Freddy Wittop Center for the Study of Performing Arts was established through an endowment by
Freddy Wittop. Related collections in the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library include the Freddy
Wittop Collection, Paris Music Hall Collection, Olin Downes Collection, Samuel Golden Collection,
Charles Coburn Collection, Theater Program Collection, W.H. McGown Collection and Ward Morehouse
Papers.
James Waldo Woodruff, Sr. Center for the Natural History of Georgia
The purpose of the James Waldo Woodruff, Sr. Center for the Natural History of Georgia is to collect and
preserve for scholarly research those historical resources that reflect and document the natural history
of the state of Georgia. The Center includes historical resources in geography, geology, meteorology,
botany, zoology, ecology and archaeology.
James Waldo Woodruff, Sr. Center for The Natural History of Georgia includes the James Waldo
Woodruff, Sr. Natural History of the Chattahoochee River Valley Collection and encompasses other
significant collections of books, manuscripts, maps, ephemera, and other materials relating to the
natural history of Georgia.
A native and lifelong resident of Columbus, Georgia, James Waldo Woodruff, Sr. (1879-1963) was a man
of many achievements, but he was best known as the “Father of the Chattahoochee.” In recognition of
his efforts on the national and state levels on behalf of Georgia, the Jim Woodruff (Sr.) Dam on the
lower Chattahoochee River was named in his honor in 1957. He was devoted to developing the
Chattahoochee River for commercial navigation while preserving the natural beauty of the River for the
benefit and high quality of life for all Georgians. He was a close associate in these efforts with President
Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Senator Richard B. Russell.
Mr. Woodruff founded the J.W. and Ethel Woodruff Foundation. Mr. and Mrs. Woodruff’s children
included Ethel Woodruff Draper, James W. Woodruff, Jr. Emily Woodruff and J. Barnett Woodruff. The
gifts to establish this important Center and Collection were made possible by their descendants serving
on the Foundation.
Mr. Woodruff was an engineering graduate of Auburn University, Class of 1899. A number of his family
members and descendants have graduated from the University of Georgia.
The Stephen E. Draper Center and Archives For the Study of Water Law And Policy
The purpose of the Stephen E. Draper Center and Archives for the Study of Water Law And Policy is to
acquire and preserve for scholarly research those historic & rare materials documenting water law and
policy. The Center and Archives houses three major collections including; the Stephen E. Draper History
Of British And American Waterways Collection, the Stephen E. Draper Private Papers and the Waters of
Georgia in History, Law and Policy Collections of notable Georgia leaders and organizations.
The lessons of history demonstrate that economic progress, ecological sustainability, public health and
safety, even the survivability of the nation-state is predicated on adequate supplies of water for
civilization to thrive.
Stephen E. Draper is a graduate of the United States Military Academy, Long Island University, Georgia
Institute of Technology and Georgia State University. He holds advanced degrees in engineering,
business, hydrology, water resources and law. He had a distinguished career in the U. S. Army and is a
decorated Vietnam War Veteran. Following his military service, Dr. Draper established an extended
career as a recognized national and international water law and policy scholar.
Dr. Draper is the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. James Waldo Woodruff, Sr. and Ethel Illges Woodruff and the
son of Major General Phillip H. Draper, and Ethel Woodruff Draper. He is married to Lucy Hargrett
Draper, a UGA graduate, to whom he is eternally grateful for her assistance and guidance. Their
daughter, Jessie Roxanne is a UGA graduate as are a number of his Woodruff and Draper nieces and
nephews.
The George Horace Lorimer Center for Print Media
George Horace Lorimer (1868-1937) served as editor of the Saturday Evening Post from 1936 to 1988
during which he resuscitated the failing magazine to unequaled prominence by hiring established
authors as well as freelance writers and political figures. Lorimer was visionary in utilizing innovations
such as color cover illustrations and potent graphic advertising strategies. By the end of his tenure,
Lorimer had influence the style of major American writers and had a significant impact on the thinking
of the ordinary citizen regarding American politics and public policy.
The George Horace Lorimer Center for Print Media focuses on acquiring the archives of writers, editors
and cartoonists who have made regular contributions to newspapers or magazines. The center includes
a lecture series attracting an audience of researchers, scholars, students and others interested in the
study of print media.
Related Collections in the Hargrett rare Book and manuscript Library include the George Horace Lorimer
Collection, Margaret Mitchell papers, Frank Daniel Papers, Medora Field Perkerson Collection, Olive Ann
Burns Papers, Wylly Folk St. John Papers, Anne Lewis papers, Lewis Grizzard Papers, Albert Brewerton
Collection, Emily Woodruff Collection and the Rebecca Latimer Felton papers.
The George Horace Lorimer Center for Print Media was established through an endowment by Mrs.
Huldah Cail Lorimer Mingledorff (1912-1998) and a gift by the Millhaven Foundation. Mrs. Mingledorff
was a native of Screven County, Georgia and a 1933 graduate of the University of Georgia.
The Lucy Hargrett Draper Center and Archives
for the Study of the Rights of Women in History and Law
The purpose of the establishment of The Lucy Hargrett Draper Center and Archives for the Study of the
Rights of Women in History and Law, Circa 1550-2050, is to acquire, preserve, maintain and make
available to scholars historic collections of rare materials documenting the world’s movements for
women’s rights and the women who led them.
Lucy Hargrett Draper’s primary British and American women historic collection, 1550-2050, exceeds
5000 rare and valuable items and has been described as one of the nation’s most important. With a
collecting emphasis on the women’s suffrage movements in the British and American experience, the
holdings include rare books, manuscripts, correspondence, photographs, publications, illustrations,
ephemera, memorabilia and artifacts.
The Second U.S. Women’s Movement Collection, 1964-2011, contains Mrs. Draper’s papers and
materials documenting four decades of federal and state legislative initiatives related to women and
families in the United States and Georgia.
Lucy Hargrett Draper is a 5th generation Wayne County, Georgia native. Her cousin Felix Hargrett, for
whom the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library is named, encouraged her collecting prior to her
graduation from the University of Georgia. She holds advanced degrees in U.S. History, education and
law. She is the mother of Jessie Draper and daughter of Dr. McKee Hargrett and Mrs. Doris Miller
Hargrett. Her husband, Stephen E. Draper, established an endowment in 1996 to make the collections
possible.
Mr. Draper wished to acknowledge the critical assistance of Dr. William Gray Potter, Dr. Stephen Elliott
Gower, Lucy T. Erickson, C. Christian Erickson, Mary Ellen Brooks, Suzanne Graham, Jan Hudson, Mary O’
Neal, and Margaret S. Hale in the monumental task of archiving the collections contained in the
Archives.
Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Gallery
Primary Wall Text, Signature Gallery
The Signature Gallery features works from six of the Hargrett Library's premier collecting areas: Colonial
Georgia, the Native American experience in Georgia, the Civil War, natural history, performing arts, and
the history of the book. The Gallery also highlights the Hargrett's centers of study, established with the
support of philanthropists who share the Hargrett Library's commitment to history and literature.
Colonial Georgia
British settlement of Georgia began in earnest in 1732 when King George II granted a charter of the
colony and named twenty-one Trustees to govern it. James Oglethorpe led the original 114 men,
women, and children who crossed the Atlantic on the Anne and established a new settlement at
Savannah in 1733. Envisioned as a refuge for debtors and buffer against Spanish Florida, Georgia also
banned slavery for its first eighteen years of existence.
The Hargrett Library's holdings on the Colonial period include the original plan of the city of Savannah,
as laid out by Oglethorpe and Noble Jones and sketched by George Jones. The papers of Trustee Sir John
Perceval Earl of Egmont provide vital information about the early colony, including the passenger list of
the first settlers. The Hargrett Library holds papers of royal governors, maps, early newspapers, and
thousands of other documents that stand as an enduring record of Colonial and Revolutionary era
Georgia.
Civil War
Between 1861 and 1865, the nation was nearly ripped apart by a bloody Civil War that created a million
casualties and freed millions of African Americans formerly held in slavery. The Hargrett Library's
holdings on the Civil War era are among its most extensive and important. The Library holds the original
Confederate Constitution, the founding document of the Southern government. Researchers have
access to more than 2,500 Confederate imprints; tens of thousands of letters, diaries, and other papers
of Union and Southern soldiers and civilians; photographs; maps; and other documents held in more
than 500 distinct manuscript collections.
Performing Arts
The Hargrett Library houses many significant theatrical collections covering all aspects of the performing
arts with a special emphasis on costume design. The Charles Coburn Collection includes scripts, movie
stills, and publicity photographs documenting the Savannah native's successful theatrical career. Coburn
received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1941.
The Paris Music Hall Collection comprises over 7,000 original renderings of costume and curtain designs
created for the music halls of Paris from 1920-1938. Twenty-six international designers are represented
in this collection including the most famous of all, Erté. The Hargrett Library houses more than 3,000
costume designs by Freddy Wittop who won the Tony Award for Hello Dolly!
Natural History
The Natural History Collection is one of the most important interdisciplinary resources in the Hargrett
Library. Represented in this collection are a variety of rare books, prints, original renderings, and
manuscripts. These materials give insight into the historical relationship between man and his
environment.
The Hargrett Library's collection of the work of John Abbot is one of the largest in the country. Abbot
(1751-1840) lived primarily in Screven County, and devoted his life to documenting the birds, spiders,
moths, butterflies and plants he discovered in that area of Georgia. In 1830, John Eaton LeConte
recorded for posterity the Turtles, Tortoises, Frogs and Salamanders of Georgia and South Carolina with
forty-nine original drawings.
Native Americans
Centuries before European colonization, indigenous peoples inhabited the land that would become
Georgia. Rich with their own distinctive languages and cultures, contact with whites would
fundamentally change the condition of their lives. In a nearly one-hundred-year saga of wars and
treaties that would continue to play out across the American Western frontier long afterward, Georgia's
native tribes were pushed to the state's fringes and finally removed, altogether.
The Hargrett Library offers extensive holdings on the Native American experience in Georgia dating from
James Oglethorpe's first contacts with Chief Tomochichi of the Yamacraw in 1733 to the forced
relocation of Georgia's Cherokees to Oklahoma in 1838 known as the "Trail of Tears."
History of the Book
Books have influenced the course of history creating the impetus for revolutions and change throughout
the world, as well as providing knowledge and enjoyment. Our collection of over 200,000 books may be
used to trace the growth and development of the book, starting with works printed before 1501 called
incunabula, meaning the “cradle” of printing and continuing throughout the centuries to the modern
book arts movement.
Within these books, researchers may study various aspects of book history such as paper making,
calligraphy, engraving, illustration, typography, design, bibliography, and bindings. The Library's
collection of small press and fine printing is one of the largest in the country.