Institute Collections

Oak Native American Ethnographic Collection

On permanent loan from Jim and Vanita Oelschlager's private collection are Native American tools, blankets, baskets, ceremonial objects, Edward Curtis books and prints, western bronzes, and a mixture of popular culture materials. The collection provides faculty, staff, and students a valuable resource to support learning opportunities. The Oak Native American Gallery exhibits items from this collection.

Lee L. Forman Collection of Bags

The Lee L. Forman Collection of Bags contains about 12,000 bags, including shopping bags, fine art, furniture, books, clothing, and more. The collection holds some famous bags, such as a bag signed by all four Beatles and Conan O'Brien's infamous bag that his guests sat on. The collection began with a fascination with the art on Bloomingdale's shopping bags and grew over four decades.

David P. Campbell Postcard Collection

The David P. Campbell Postcard Collection contains about 250,000 postcards dating from the late 1800s. This collection represents an historical look at natural and human science as well as global society and culture encompassing a variety of themes including holidays, people, geographic locations, sentiments, and political and social statements. In addition, this collection showcases a variety of formats including photographic postcards and different media used to make them. The postcards can be viewed in the 4th floor library during limited hours.

Join the Akron Postcard Club to explore the history of postcards each month through the Campbell Postcard Collection.