Special Collections is located on the 4th floor, Room 403, of the Samuel H. Coleman Memorial Library. The current collection consists of the African-American, Emily A. Copeland collections, and FAMUANA collection.
African-American Collection
The African American collection was started in the late 1920's, with the majority of the collection acquired in the 1960's and 1970's under the leadership of Alverta Morris. With over 20,000 titles by and about African-Americans, the collection consists of books, pictures, newspapers, periodicals, digital documents, catalogs, theses, dissertations and yearbooks.
Emily A. Copeland Collection
The Emily A. Copeland Collection is a collection of African-American materials in various formats, donated by and named for the late Dean of the School of Library Science at FAMU.
FAMUANA Collection
This is a collection of newspaper clippings, journal articles, and pamphlets by and about FAMU alumni and employees.
The Scholar
The Scholar, a 20'x10'6"x9' welded steel sculpture by Toby Martin, is located in the rear courtyard of Samuel H. Coleman Memorial Library.
"This sculpture is about strength reflected through the vertical form and the inclusion of mass, volume, and space on the purist understanding of related knowledge."
"I've tried to create a form that is based on spirituality and its relevance in regard to hierarchy as related to education. Through the acquisition of knowledge toward scholarship, humility is needed to help breed understanding and the acceptance of the individual and their discipline."
"The small sculptures within the larger form are symbolic of different disciplines in education, such as science, philosophy, and engineering as understood to totally develop critical thinking and knowledge, as an accumulation of many areas that should reflect a sensitivity for how it is applied.
Art galleries are located on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floors. Art is also strategically located in the annex.
The Heritage Room, located in Room 412A , on the fourth floor annex, was established in 2005 with completion of Phase II of the Samuel H. Coleman Memorial Library expansion. The Heritage Room houses limited editions and historical resources that are significant to FAMU's history as well as to African American life and culture.