M-117: Archives of the St. Louis Mercantile Library and the St. Louis Mercantile Library Association
The Archives includes historical records of the St. Louis Mercantile Library Association, and of its subsequent history as an affiliated institution with the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Included are accession records, which run from 1846-1950; selected early circulation records and membership roles, letters, minutes and financial records, 1846-present. For a more complete list of the 600 linear feet of papers, ledgers, and printed materials across 26 sub-series, see the collection's finding aid.
St. Louis Mercantile Library at the University of Missouri-St. Louis
Record Group 17 represents the annual reports of the library association printed at the beginning of each year to summarize the year before. They begin with the third annual report because the first two were not published. The annual reports contain narratives detailing the library's history and accession of new collections as well as budget details and membership numbers. Some reports are published with lecture transcripts. The seventh report is translated into German. Starting in the mid-1850s, reports were also published by the shareholders of the Mercantile Library Hall until its eventual complete purchase by the library association. The reports appear in this collection in alphabetical order, but can be sorted by date through the digital library's search interface.
Record Group 24 contains materials pertaining to the programs and lectures which were held in the old Mercantile Library Hall through the 1880s, and the more recent lectures that have been held at the Library since the Lunch and Lecture series began in 1983.