Friends Collection and College Archives

Welcome to the Arthur S. and Kathleen Postle Friends Collection and Archives.  Our department includes the Friends Collection, the Earlham College Archives, and the rare book collections.The Friends Collection includes the college's books, periodicals, and manuscripts on Quakerism. The College Archive is home to Earlham College historical materials. The rare book collections include books belonging to Earlham College and Bethany Theological Seminary on a variety of topics, including but not limited to religion, history, art, literature, and science.

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The Friends Collection and College Archives is home to one of the best Quaker Collections in the world, with more than 14,000 books and nearly as many pamphlets, some going back to the 17th Century when the Society of Friends was founded. These works are supplemented with an extensive collection of Quaker genealogical materials. Personal diaries, letters, and detailed records of monthly and yearly meetings reveal the lives of thousands of Quaker men and women.

Search across our finding aids for manuscript collections both college related and Quaker related, as well as an index of Indiana Yearly Meeting Minutes.

The majority of our collections have not been digitized. Individual items -- documents, photographs, etc. -- usually cannot be viewed online.  However, the collections and items that are available digitally can be found through the resources on our Digital Collections page.

Our hours can change from semester to semester, during breaks, and for other expected and unexpected reasons. Please check the Hours tab for the most accurate and up-to-date information on our hours.

Because we are a Special Collections Library and Archive, our hours are different from the rest of the Library. Please check our hours carefully to make sure we will be open for your visit. Sometimes we are in meetings or away from campus and we may have to close unexpectedly. We try to keep these times to a minimum.

Hours may change on short notice based on staffing. Appointments are highly recommended for people traveling to visit us. (You can request an appointment by emailing us at archives@earlham.edu.) We recommend making your appointment at least three business days in advance.