Special & Historical Collections at the CAMH Library: Introduction

Historical Collection

The CAMH Library is home to several special and historical collections. The books found in these collections were inherited by the CAMH Library from the libraries of two of CAMH’s merging partners: the Farrar Library of the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry and the ARF Library of the Addiction Research Foundation. Pictured left is a Shakespearean Temperance Calendar, and a dedication to David Archibald from Marty Mann, author of "A Primer on Alcoholism" (1950) and an early female advocate of Alcoholics Anonymous. 

Donations of Historical Significance

• Temperance Collection- a substantial collection of materials on the topics of temperance, prohibition and alcohol. The bulk of the collection is made up of 2 collections which were donated by Rev. John A. Linton and Rev. Benjamin H. Spence and are known as: 
  • Linton Collection
  • Spence Collection

• Other Donations- additional materials of historical significance were donated to the Farrar Library and the ARF Library, most notably by E.M. Jellinek, an alcohol researcher, and H. David Archibald, the founding director of ARF. The Legislative Library of Ontario also donated several books.

The library also holds an extensive collection of pre-1950 books and reports of historical interest which were collected over the years by the Farrar and ARF Libraries.

Additional historical materials can be found at the CAMH Archives. The holdings of the CAMH Archives can be searched through the Archeion database here.

Special Collections

• ARF Substudies- a series of unpublished research reports dating from 1957-1983. Also included are the Mathematical Memos from 1958-1961.
• Littmann Collection- a collection of books on psychiatry and mental health, funds for which were provided by the Littmann family to honour the memory of Dr. Sebastian K. Littmann.
• Psychiatry Seminars Reading Lists- the reading lists for a series of informal seminars which were hosted by Dr. Frederick Glaser and Dr. John Peachey in the late 1970s and early 1980s for ARF staff.
• SALIS Collection- a growing online collection of materials about alcohol, tobacco and other drugs. It is available through the Internet Archive.