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Special Collections

C.L. Harrison Collection

The Charles L. Harrison Collection

Charles Luce Harrison (1883-1944), a Cape Girardeau businessman, bequeathed his excellent library to Southeast Missouri State University. Mrs. Harrison placed her husband's collection in Kent Library in June 1946 when she was preparing to move from Cape Girardeau.

The collection contains about 800 items, nearly all of them rare or unusual in some respect. The most general statement one can make regarding the Harrison rare book collection is that it is representative of the book arts. The collection contains examples of book illustration, fine printing, illumination, fine binding, fore-edged painting and the extra-illustrated work. All of these categories are well represented and a number of the items fall into more than one category. The collection contains superb examples of virtually all literary genres as well as books and manuscripts ranging from the thirteenth to the twentieth century.