Suggestions for Donation of Magazines and Books on British Royal Ceremonies

[David Smith]

I have a large collection of magazines (ILN's, Sphere, Graphic, etc) and books on British royal ceremonies such as jubilees, weddings, coronations and funerals. I would like to donate this collection to a university where it could be kept together and available for future research. Any suggestions would be welcome.

 

[David Smith]

It looks like no one has a suggestion of a university or library in reply to my original question. Would any individual be interested in the collection?

 

[Curryong]

Hi David,
I would say that posters here often have their own large collections of magazines on royalty from all over the world. And I know from my own experience storage can sometimes be a problem in these cases! As well, British posters and those from the Commonwealth realms would have quite a few sources to consult in their own countries. I know Australia has.

However I’m not sure about universities and libraries in some parts of the US. I don’t know where you live, but maybe your State University or any community colleges near to you might well be interested. They could also maybe suggest some libraries too. Just a couple of suggestions, and it only takes a phone call!

 

[Toledo]

Hi David,
I would say that posters here often have their own large collections of magazines on royalty from all over the world. And I know from my own experience storage can sometimes be a problem in these cases. As well, British posters and those from the Commonwealth realms would have quite a few sources to consult in their own countries. I know Australia does.

However I’m not sure about universities and libraries in some parts of the US. I don’t know where you live, but maybe your State University or any community colleges near to you may well be interested. They could also maybe suggest some libraries too. Just a couple of suggestions, and it only takes a phone call!

My experience:
When we started to prepare in 2017 for retirement in 2020 and relocate to NY in 2021 one thing we tried to do was to slim down the huge collection of books we accumulated. A large amount was history, royalty, architecture, etc. So we called a few public libraries in Connecticut to see if they accepted donations.

They said no. Libraries where digitalizing their books, and placing physical books on sale bins or, relying on internet access to get to books from other libraries or places like Google Read.

So, we packed them and brought them with us to NY and build an area for them as personal library. It's sad no one wants physical books, some never been digitalized, but that's the story these days. I have books so far from commercial like the history of Portuguese colonies in Brazil, many XIX and early 20th on royalty, etc.

I recall reading when I returned last year that Warren's collection was donated by his family to the Forum to be digitalized. I hope we had that so all our members could donate their precious books to be kept in here for everyone to share.

 

[David Smith]

I have contacted several university libraries in the US. Only the University of Illinois Library accepted part of the books. They didn't want any of the magazines. The oldest item is a newspaper for William IV's coronation in 1831 but most is for 19th and 20th century coronations, weddings, jubilees and funerals. I would really hate to see the collection thrown away if someone would be interested in it.

 

[Sionevar]

I had the same problem when I moved province last year - I had to get rid of 90% of a book and magazine collection I'd been accumulating for 25 years.

Nobody wanted them. None of the libraries in my area - public, academic or otherwise - would even consider them. They told me they have to buy materials through approved channels to ensure material is properly licensed and that royalties are paid. They also told me that older non-fiction books have little or no value, because many of them contain viewpoints or opinions that are now outdated, and have been replaced as more information on the subject has been uncovered and newer works have been written.

I ended up listing everything on my local Freecycle website, and giving them away. But this only got rid of the books. The magazines and brochures went in the trash.

It is indeed sad, that nobody wants physical media now, but at the same time, books are heavy, and expensive to ship, and use up a lot of space - many people just don't want to deal with that hassle.