What the Library Collects for The Modern Literature Collection.

As collection development for Modern Literature Collection seeks to expand and develop our current collections, checking the collection descriptions http://library.wustl.edu/units/spec/manuscripts/mlc) will be a good guide to how well the materials that you intend to donate fit with the collections held at WULDSC.

In addition to expanding and developing our current collections, WULDSC collects print material and manuscripts for its Modern Literature Collection that using the following subject areas as a general guide:

Contemporary British and American Literature and History
Contemporary British and American Poetry
Contemporary British and American Prose
Contemporary British and American Non-Fiction Prose
Contemporary British and American Drama
Sound recordings of authors
Screenwriting and scripts
St. Louis Literature and History
Literary Magazine Archives
Literary Press Archives
History of American Literary Studies
American Critical and Cultural Studies

For The Modern Literature Collection, the Library collects materials in various formats, including:
Books
Computer media (diskettes, etc.)
Correspondence (personal and professional)
Diaries/ Journals
Drafts of creative works
Films/ Videotapes
Financial Records
Legal Records
Memoirs/ Reminiscences
Memoranda
Newsletters and other Organizational Publications
Business Files
Oral History Tapes, Transcripts, and Supporting Materials
Pamphlets/ Brochures/ Fliers
Photographs
Postcards
Reports
Scrapbooks
Sound Recordings
Speeches/ Lectures
Subject Files

For more on the types of print and manuscript materials generally collected by special collections libraries like Washington University's,
as well as general information on the gift process, please consult the following brochures:

The Society of American Archivists

     "A Guide to Donating Your Personal or Family Papers to a Repository
     (located at www.archivists.org/publications/donating-familyrecs.asp)
     "A Guide to Donating Your Organizational Records to a Repository"
     (available at www.archivists.org/publications/donating-orgrecs.asp).

The American Library Association

     "Your Old Books: Frequently Asked Questions About Rare Books and Book Values"
     (located at www.rbms.nd.edu/yob.html)

Making a Gift
If you are interested in making a gift of material to The Modern Literature Collection held at the WULDSC, please first contact by telephone, U.S. mail, or electronic mail one of the Library staff members below. Providing a description and/or listing of the item(s) or collection under consideration is very helpful. Information on quantity and condition of material is useful. For printed items, providing us with the author, title, date, publisher or printer, and place of publication is also helpful.

Staff/Contacts
Anne Posega, Head of Special Collections
Washington University
Campus Box 1061
One Brookings Drive, St. Louis MO 63130
anne-posega@wustl.edu
(314) 935-5487

Chatham Ewing, Curator Manuscripts / Modern Literature
Washington University
Campus Box 1061
One Brookings Drive, St. Louis MO 63130
cewing22@wustl.edu
(314) 935-5413
 
 

Physical Transfer of Materials and Transfer of Ownership
If you and a member of the Library's collecting staff determine that the Library is the best place for your item(s) or collection, the Library will arrange for delivery of the material to the WULDSC. Staff members may pack and pick up the material, or request that you pack and send it by U.S. Mail, FedEx, or UPS. Include a brief inventory of the materials being sent, and notify us before making a shipment so that we may be prepared to receive it. Shipments should be made to the following address, as appropriate:

Special Collections
Washington University in St. Louis
Campus Box 1061
One Brookings Drive
St. Louis MO 63130

A gift agreement outlining the terms and conditions of the donation will be drafted and sent to you for your approval and signature. Our online version can be used as is or customized to suit donors' needs. Upon the receipt of material by Washington University, we will send you a letter acknowledging your gift. The acknowledgement letter or the signed gift  agreement is the instrument by which legal ownership is transferred from you to WULDSC. Materials will not be accepted on deposit or on loan. For more on gift agreements in general, see the Society of American Archivists brochure "A Guide to Deeds of Gift,"located at http://www.archivists.org/catalog/deed_of_gift.html .

Monetary Appraisals for Tax Purposes
Donors should consult a tax advisor or an attorney for information on tax deductions for gifts of printed or manuscript materials before donating the materials. Donors may be entitled to take an income tax deduction by claiming their gift of rare books or manuscript materials as a charitable donation. While Library staff cannot serve as tax advisors, it is the Library's understanding that to claim a deduction for non-cash gifts in excess of $500 within a calendar year, a donor must file IRS Form 8283. A formal appraisal, performed no more that sixty days before the date of the gift, is required if deductions are sought for any gift valued at over $5000.
Professional standards, University policy, and IRS regulations prohibit Washington University staff from making such a monetary appraisal, but see below for a list of local qualified independent appraisers who can do so for a fee.

R. Dunaway--Bookseller
St. Louis, MO
R. Dunaway, Proprietor
Email: n/a
Phone: (314) 725-1581
Fax: n/a

Anthony Garnett-Fine Books
St. Louis, MO
Anthony Garnett, Proprietor/
Email: n/a
Phone: (314) 367-8080
Fax: (314) 361-3014

You may also contact the following organizations to obtain names and contact information for qualified appraisers:

Society of American Archivists
www.archivists.org
600 S. Federal
Suite 504
Chicago, IL 60605

American Society of Appraisers
www.appraisers.org
Dulles International Airport
Box 17265
Washington, DC 20041

Appraisers Association of America
www.appraisersassoc.org
60 East 42nd Street
New York, NY 10165

The Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America
www.abaa.org
50 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, NY 10020

The donor is responsible for arranging for and paying the cost of such an appraisal. To complete the appraisal process, the curator or the head of the WULDSC will sign the necessary form and send the formal IRS receipt to the donor. See IRS publications 526, "Charitable Contributions," and 561, "Determining the Value of Donated Property," and consult your tax advisor or attorney for further information on tax deductions for gifts of printed or manuscript materials.

Copyright
Copyright belongs to the creator, or his or her heirs, of writings or other original material (such as photographs or music) within a collection, but may be legally transferred. Although maintaining copyright permits individuals to maintain control over and/or receive commercial benefits from a work, the WULDSC encourages donors to consider transferring copyright for donated materials to the Library, so that researchers can more easily obtain permission to use quotations from these gift materials. The transfer of copyright applies only to those materials created by the donor, as an individual or organization. If your gift contains
materials created by other parties (such as correspondence received from others), copyright interests are held by those creators, though you have the right to transfer the physical object. An agreement to transfer copyright to the WULDSC, therefore, applies only to materials for which you are the actual creator.

Restrictions on User Access to Gift Materials
The WULDSC seeks to make donated manuscript materials freely available to the public for research and therefore discourages the placement of restrictions on collections. Because collections donated to the WULDSC may contain sensitive material, however, temporary limits on user access maybe warranted to protect the privacy of the donor or individuals
represented within the collection. Staff will be happy to discuss possible restrictions with donors.

Care of Materials
When WULDSC adds gift materials to its holdings, it takes care to ensure their long-term preservation and to make them accessible to researchers. Materials are housed in closed stack areas under environmentally controlled conditions, are protected by an electronic security system, and do not circulate outside the WULDSC reading room. Acid-free boxes, folders,
and other containers are employed to house materials, and item-level conservation steps are taken when appropriate. To permit research use of materials, items and collections are arranged, described, and cataloged in accordance with standard library and archival procedures. To promote widespread awareness of holdings, WULDSC makes descriptions of collections and items available on its own web site, on the Washington University Library system's online catalog, and through national databases such as OCLC, RLIN, and NUCMC. Reading room regulations and close staff supervision promote the security and proper
use of materials by researchers.