Are you interested in rare books and how they are constructed? Drop by the South Carolina State Library to see our current display titled, “Anatomy of the Book”. This exhibit includes slipcases, gilt, leather bindings, and even a deerskin binding. The rare books on display range from 1707 to 1932. The oldest book on display is a rebound version of John Archdale’s A New Description of that Fertile and Pleasant Province of Carolina: with a Brief Account of its Discovery and Settling, and the Government thereof to this Time and features a vibrant example of marbling.

The South Carolina Digital State Documents Depository provides access to publications produced by state agencies and state-supported academic institutions. These publications provide citizens with crucial information about state government, including statistics, annual accountability reports, and data on a wide variety of topics related to the state.

This newly available online collection features photos from the 1940s-1970s from the archives of the South Carolina State Library. Many of the images were taken by State Library field agents and include photos of public library staff and patrons, exhibits and displays, library programs, and State Library Board staff and programs.

The collection is available via the South Carolina Digital Library at scmemory.org.

SC Humanities is pleased to announce a special South Carolina tour of Water/Ways, an exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution that dives into water-an essential component of life on our planet, environmentally, culturally, and historically. Developed as part of the Museum on Main Street (MOMS) program, this exhibit is designed especially for small cultural organizations and rural audiences that lack regular access to traveling exhibitions due to space and cost limitations. 

Join us from noon to 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 17, for a free author talk and book signing: Southern Perspectives on the Queer Movement: Committed to Home by Sheila Morris. These collected essays by South Carolinians explore their gay identities and activism from the emergence of the HIV-AIDS pandemic to the realization of marriage equality in the state thirty years later. Each of the volume’s nineteen essays addresses an aspect of gay life, from hesitant coming-out stories in earlier decades to the creation of grassroots organizations.

The South Carolina State Library will be closed for the Christmas holiday December 24-26, 2018, and for the New Years holiday on January 1, 2019. Image: 'Men and boy make snow balls in front of the State House,' 1930. Accessed via the SC Digital Library at SCMemory.org and from the Richland Library Digital Collection.

Williams brings his new book, Unforgettable, to life through a new exhibit, Unforgettable: Celebrating A Time Of Life, Hope And Bravery.