Library Special Collections and Archives

The UMKC Libraries Special Collections and Archives house a broad range of primary source materials that are rich in the humanities, particularly in local performing arts, LGBTQ communities, social services organizations, and Kansas City jazz as well as Kansas-Missouri late 19th century Western Americana and national radio broadcasts from the 1930s-1960s.

But these amazing primary sources don’t become history by just “happening” on a shelf. Organizing, digitizing, and describing a single collection takes hundreds of hours of meticulous work. Help us bring the light to our unique material by supporting high-impact learning for students, like our national award-winning student-curated exhibits, undergraduate research, and giving the next generation of scholars the tools to look towards the future having access to the voices of the past.