The Special Collections and Archives stewards several resources closely connected to the Twin Ports community, namely the Lake Superior Maritime collection and the Wisconsin Historical Society Area Research Center (ARC) for Douglas and Washburn counties.
The Special Collections are also home to a small but vibrant collection of rare books, scores, and periodicals for use in research and classroom instruction.
The Lake Superior Maritime Collection is our largest collection of maritime materials. Explore over 7,000 ship files for Great Lakes vessels; hundreds of blueprints and technical drawings; subject files on many maritime subjects; shipping news articles from various Great Lakes publications; ship log books and associated record books; and much more.
The Fraser Shipyards Collection at UW-Superior contains project files, technical drawings, and photographs for ships built, modified, and repaired at Fraser Shipyards in Superior, Wisconsin.
The Duluth-Superior Harbor Club Collection contains the papers and other historical materials of the Duluth-Superior Harbor Club, a long-standing social club for individuals working in and retired from maritime industries in the Twin Ports area.
The Dan Rau Collection is the maritime collection of Captain Dan Rau, former UW-Superior professor and captain of the Lake Superior Research Institute's research vessel, the L.L. Smith, Jr.
The Alexander McDougall Collection contains materials collected by the McDougall family, including photographs of whaleback ships, scrapbooks, correspondence, and newspaper clippings.
The Daniel Sloan Collection contains Great Lakes maritime materials collected by Daniel Sloan, including photographs, postcards, publications, and audio-visual materials.
Maritime materials, including thousands of photographs and negatives, collected by Kenneth Thro.
The Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS), founded in 1846, is one of the largest and most active historical societies in the nation. Its headquarters are located in Madison, Wisconsin.
A branch of the WHS, The UW-Superior ARC is one of 14 Area Research Centers statewide. It provides access to collections of local historical material owned by the WHS. The UW-Superior ARC serves Washburn and Douglas Counties and holds only records from these regions.
You can Search the WHS Archives to discover collections and materials available throughout the WHS and the Area Research Center network. Some materials from other ARCs may be available for transfer upon request.
Are you interested in seeing our collections of rare books and manuscripts? You can either let us know what you're looking for or you can use the search bar below. Once you've found something of interest, go ahead and email us to schedule an appointment visit us.