The Drexel Archives contains over 9,000 rare books, more than 350 cubic feet of university records and a dozen books that were printed before 1500. The Archives includes a copy of theses and dissertations written by Drexel students in fulfillment of the requirements for their degree. The Archives contains copies of yearbooks, guides to the curriculum, and copies of the Drexel Triangle dating back to 1926. Many of the books in the Archives were donated by George Standish and concern the architecture, design, and fashion of the turn of the century. The Archives also contains thousands of photographs, material related to the Drexel family, and records concerning the founding of the school.
Archives are the humanities' equivalent of the laboratory.
Scientists must conduct experiments because, although they may have ample book knowledge, without time spent in the laboratory they are missing critical experience. Humanists share a similar challenge. Paintings, buildings, and other material evidence of the past are highly susceptible to interpretation. Written objects, on the other hand, although still open to a researcher's perspective, speak to us more directly than creative works can. Feel free to stop by.