Manuscripts Reading Room
Visit the Manuscripts Reading Room
The Manuscripts Reading Room is located on the third floor of Billy Graham Hall in Room 307, and is open to the general public as well as the Wheaton College community. No appointments are necessary to use our collections, but we do encourage visitors to notify us and request materials prior to arriving. A staff member is always available to answer any questions about our collections or to provide a reference interview.
The Manuscripts Reading Room is designated for research relating to materials from Wheaton Archives & Special Collections only. It cannot be used as a study area for any other purpose. Access to the Evangelism & Missions Library and general study space is available in the Special Collections Commons.
Guidelines for Manuscript Reading Room
1. Upon arrival, please sign in at the Reading Room front desk.
2. All visitors must complete the registration form and present a valid photo ID. Registration forms are valid for the academic year.
3. No food, beverages, or chewing gum in the Manuscripts Reading Room.
4. All coats, hats, bags, umbrellas, and other personal items must be stored outside the Reading Room. Please see the Reading Room Supervisor for a locker key to securely store personal items.
5. Visitors may bring the following items into the Reading Room: laptop computer, camera, personal scanner, cell phone (silenced). Storage cases for these items must be left outside the Reading Room.
6. Please leave all papers, pens, and study materials in a locker. The Reading Room Supervisor will provide paper and pencils upon request.
7. All phone calls must take place outside of the Reading Room.
8. The Manuscript Reading Room is a quiet research area. Please be considerate of other patrons.
9. Visitors may use the Wheaton College guest Wi-Fi account.
10. Visitors must sign out and in again when leaving the Reading Room for more than 15 minutes.
11. Children under 12 years of age must be accompanied by an adult.
1. Archival materials are one-of-a-kind and do not circulate. Materials may be requested in advance or through the Reading Room Supervisor.
2. Researchers may use one (1) box or up to ten (10) loose folders at a time. Folders must remain in the order in which they were received within the box. Materials within folders may not be marked or rearranged in any way.
3. Researchers must consult the Reading Room Supervisor before taking photographs or duplicating any archival material. Please see our policy on Digitizing by Researchers for more information.
4. Sound and moving image recordings require advance notice to use in the Manuscripts Reading Room. Please allow one (1) hour for sound recordings and video tapes, and eight (8) hours for 16mm films to be retrieved and used in the Reading Room.
5. A guide to citing archival materials is available upon request from the Reading Room Supervisor. Researchers are responsible for complying with all laws, including those of libel, copyright, and privacy, involved in the use of any material.
6. Please allow our archival staff to re-shelve books or other reference materials. These items may be left on the research tables at end of day.
Visitors who fail to observe any of these guidelines may be asked to leave the Manuscripts Reading Room and forfeit future access to the collections.