This week the University Archives and Special Collections was highlighted in FGCU 360 Magazine and will be in Florida Weekly. The article is by University Marketing and Communication's Assistant Director, Drew Sterwald. Thanks, Drew, for the fascinating article and the spotlight on local Florida history!

Read the article here: Research team helping create digital archive of local island’s history

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Please visit our new Archives exhibit! From Idea to Impact - When the Florida legislature approved the creation of a 10th University, they never would have imagined the impact that Florida Gulf Coast University would have on the Southwest Florida community. Over the last two and a half decades, FGCU has grown rapidly. Much of that growth has been driven by the heart of the institution’s mission - students. In celebration of FGCU’s silver anniversary, the University Archives and Special Collections presents Wings Up: 25 Years of Student Life at FGCU.

Recognizing that student involvement is central to the campus experience and the university’s development, Wings Up illustrates the strides students at Florida Gulf Coast University have made over the last 25 years. We hope that in looking at the accomplishments and experiences of the university’s forty-four thousand graduates, current and future students will be able to see themselves as essential parts of FGCU's history in the making.

The Archives is open 9 am - 5 pm, Monday - Friday. We are located on the third floor of the library in room 322. If you have questions, please contact libarchives@fgcu.edu.

As a follow up to the University Archives and Special Collections’ 2020 exhibition, “To Life: The Liberation of Ravensbrück” we invite the community to experience the traveling exhibit Ravensbrück – We Who Lived There currently viewable on the first floor in Library West of Bradshaw Library.

Ravensbrück was a concentration camp for women located about 90 km north of Berlin. It opened in 1939 imprisoning 130 000 women and children from more than 30 different countries. In April of 1945, more than 21,000 survivors were rescued during the Red Cross’ White Bus Rescue Action and brought to Sweden.

The exhibit, Ravensbrück – We Who Lived There, is the result of a joint student and teacher project at Katedralskolan in Lund, Sweden 2018–2019. Students from the Advanced History

Program and the IB Program beautifully share the stories of the women and children imprisoned at Ravensbrück.

The exhibit is brought to you by FGCU’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Research and the University Archives and Special Collections. It was brought to the United States by Better Futures Foundation, a Sarasota based 501(c)3 non-profit.

Please join FGCU's Archives and Special Collections on Thursday, March 31^st from 6-7:15pm, for the virtual event “Reflections on Healthcare” via Zoom. 

 Moderated by Jarrett Eady and Jim Nathan, a panel will reflect on the history of midwifery, Jones Walker Hospital, and issues regarding access to healthcare. The event is in conjunction with the exhibition, The Black Experience in Lee County, which runs through April 28th, 2022. You can visit the exhibit Monday through Friday from 9am-5pm on the third floor of FGCU's Bradshaw Library, room LIB322. A Q&A will follow the presentation and registration is required. Register here.  

 If you have any questions, please email libarchives@fgcu.edu.  

The Florida Gulf Coast University Archives and Special Collections presents The Shape of Orchids: An Eternal Love Affair, opening to the public on August 19th, 2021. Orchids are considered to be one of the most coveted of ornamental plants with their exotic, graceful, and delicate form. The orchid has, for many centuries, been a symbol of love, luxury, beauty, and strength. 

 The exhibition celebrates the Porecki Collection, named after Daniel and Mary Alice Porecki, in a new Victorian-esque narrative. Their own love affair began the moment they set eyes on each other – fueled by their mutual passion for horticulture. From the moment the Poreckis bought their first orchid, there was no turning back. Africa, Costa Rica and Jamaica are only a few of the many incredible destinations they traveled to collect new specimens. Their love of live plants encouraged a new passion: collecting orchid-related treasures from flea markets and antique stores. The Poreckis lived by their own rules – traveling, gardening, caring for family, and collecting were the staples of their incredible, orchid-fueled life together. 

The Shape of Orchids highlights rare prints dating back to the early 17th century, a collection of stamps from across the globe, and Neil Gaiman’s Black Orchid comics donated by Porecki in 2016. The exhibition features rare books from the permanent collection, Clyde Butcher photographs, handcrafted botanical wallpapers, local herbarium specimens, and living orchid walls on loan from the Naples Botanical Gardens.  

For questions, please contact libarchives@fgcu.edu.