Historian S. George Ellsworth has given his collection of photographs, books, correspondence and other items to the Utah State University Library. It will be housed in Archives and Special Collections.
A reception honoring Ellsworth and his wife Maria will be held Tuesday, March 1, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the Haight Alumni Center on the USU campus to thank Ellsworth for his gift to the library, according to Max Peterson, director of library and information services in the Merrill Library. The public is invited."This is a prime collection," said Bradford Cole, keeper of manuscripts in Special Collections. "It includes over 2,000 photographs that show not only people but the physical geography of Utah and the West. There are photos from the Powell expedition, the WPA series by Dorthea Lange, the Smithsonian and the National Gallery of Art.
"There are photographs of drawings and paintings showing artifacts, Native Americans, Spaniards and other things from pioneer times. Every aspect of Utah life and its ethnic groups is shown."
Photography is just one portion of the collection, and Cole praises Ellsworth for his scholarly and meticulous research. He says the material is almost all in mint condition.
"The Ellsworth collection will help us fill in many spaces in our own collection," Cole said. "In fact, we are already outlining projects around this collection."
Ellsworth is author of "Utah Heritage," the textbook used in Utah's junior high schools. Much of the material he gave USU's Special Collections relates to his research for this textbook.
Included are several historical manuscripts, lists of state officials covering most of the state's history, a collection of microfilm and what Cole describes as "tons of books."
It also includes a bibliography of other Utah- and Mormon pioneer-related collections as well as a clip file from local newspapers and the New York Times. An endowment, established in conjunction with the collection, will be used to purchase the best books written on Utah and the Mormon pioneers.
"We also have all his correspondence from his tenure as a professor and department head in USU's History Department and his correspondence when he was in charge of the Western Historical Quarterly," said Cole. "There is much from his teaching of Greek and Roman history and also a large amount of material on his own family and early settlements in Utah and Arizona territory."
The books on Greece and Rome will go into the library's stacks, according to Cole. The rest will go into a Utah Heritage Room with other biographical and historical work on Utah. Cole says the most valuable things in the collection will be available but archival security measures will be followed.