October 28, 2021
Library of Congress Acquires Rare Book Collection from American Foundation for the Blind
Press Contact: María Peña, mpena@loc.gov
The Library of Congress has acquired the M.C. Migel Memorial Rare Book Collection from the American Foundation for the Blind, comprised of more than 750 items dating from 1617 to the present, including books by and about Hellen Keller and other blind authors. The collection is a treasure trove of seminal books on blindness, maps, rare pamphlets and many volumes of poetry, biographies and autobiographies.
Among the rare finds in the collection are books that provide a historical perspective on changing social attitudes toward the blind and innovations in the treatment and education of the blind over the past 300 years.
“The acquisition of the collection from the American Foundation for the Blind expands in a significant way the Library’s coverage of the historical responses to the practical, social and institutional needs of the blind,” said Mark Dimunation, chief of rare books and special collections at the Library of Congress. “This is a most welcome addition for researchers as well as those who rely upon the Library for services and [...]