About the Libraries
The J.D. Williams Library serves as the heart of campus, offering resources, services, and spaces that inspire learning, research, and discovery.
University Libraries
J.D. Williams Library
The Williams Library serves as the general library, housing books, periodicals, microforms, manuscripts, government publications, audiovisual materials, and maps. A Starbucks coffee shop and soft seating areas enhance the library experience. Public computers and free wireless access are available in both the Williams and Science Libraries. The Libraries are open 80.5 hours per week during regular semesters and offer in-person, email, chat, and virtual reference services.
The Science Library
Located in the Thad Cochran National Center for Natural Products Research, the Science Library serves students and faculty in Pharmacy, Chemistry, and Biochemistry. It holds over 65,000 volumes, three group study rooms, and seven computers. Staff provide research support, interlibrary loan, and general assistance.
Study, Event, & Meeting Spaces
The University Libraries offer a variety of spaces to support study, instruction, events, and meetings. From group study rooms and individual carrels to classrooms and event venues, these spaces are designed to meet the diverse needs of the University community. Usage guidelines and reservation details vary by space.
Unique Collections at the Libraries
Mississippi, the Blues, the University of Mississippi, and the American South
The Archives & Special Collections department preserves materials related to Mississippi, the Blues, the University of Mississippi, and the American South. The four units—General Special Collections, the Blues Archive, Visual Collections, and the Modern Political Archive—offer unique resources, including 70,000 sound recordings and the Martin Dain and J.R. Cofield William Faulkner photograph collections. Digital collections are available through the Institutional Repository.
Historical Reports, Government Maps, Ethnographic Records, and More
As a Federal Depository Library since 1883, J.D. Williams Library holds over 3.67 million federal documents, including historical reports, ethnographic explorations, and 250,000 government maps. The Library is also a Center of Excellence for the United States Commission on Civil Rights, the IRS, and the SBA.
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) Collection
In 2001, the J.D. Williams Library became the official library of the accounting profession by acquiring the AICPA collection. This 129,000-volume archive includes rare incunabula and every item cited in the Accountant’s Index since 1923. Selected historical documents, such as the Accounting Historians Journal, are being digitized.
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Gifts & Donations
At the heart of every great university is an outstanding library. It is the reservoir of knowledge essential to the basic educational experience. Your gift to the University of Mississippi Libraries will make a difference at Ole Miss for generations to come.
Give to the Libraries
Exhibits
UM Common Read 2022-2023: The Anthropocene Reviewed, by John Green
Created by Michelle Emanuel, University of Mississippi
Created September 2022
Since 2011, the Common Reading Experience unites first-year students and faculty around a shared book. The 2022–2023 selection, The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green, explores humanity’s impact on the planet.
- J.D. Williams Library, 2nd Floor
Mississippi Mormons: Portrait of a People Exhibit
Created by Mason Williams, University of Mississippi
March - May 2021
Latter-day Saints, commonly referred to as Mormons, first arrived in Mississippi in 1839 with the arrival of missionaries in Tishomingo County. Since then, they have come to number nearly 22,000 people in the state.
- J.D. Williams Library, 2nd floor
Oxford Conference for the Book 2022
March - May 2022
Five writers featured in the 2022 Oxford Conference for the Book are highlighted in this display: Raven Leilani, Jason Mott, W. Ralph Eubanks, Kate Clifford Larson, and Imani Perry.
- J.D. Williams Library, 2nd Floor
Black History Now: Poets, Authors, Painters, and Musicians
February - April 2022
This two-sided exhibit on the J.D. Williams Library’s first floor featured Black History Now titles and books by authors from the 2022 Oxford Conference for the Book.
- J.D. Williams Library, 1st Floor
The Women's Bureau: Past and Present
- J.D. Williams Library, 1st Floor
Did You Know That 1949 Nobel Prize Author William Faulkner Was a Hollywood Screenwriter?
January-March 2022
The DJ “Prince” Charles Smith collection consists of 864 vinyl dance records that provided the soundtrack for queer life in North Mississippi during the last two decades of the 20th century.
- J.D. Williams Library, 2nd floor
Exhibit Display Proposal Forms
The University of Mississippi Libraries Display Proposal Forms are designed for users (library employees and non-library employees) to submit ideas for exhibits, displays, or promotional features within the Libraries. This form ensures that proposals are reviewed for relevance, feasibility, and alignment with the Libraries’ mission to support learning, research, and engagement. Please provide detailed descriptions, timelines, and resource needs so that each display can be planned and executed effectively. Please complete all required fields to help us evaluate and coordinate your proposed display.
Email libraryexhibits@lib.olemiss.edu if you have any questions.
Introduction
A thoughtful and provoking exhibit is one of the best ways for UM Libraries to engage all who walk through our doors. Because part of the mission of the UM Libraries is to inspire intellectual discovery, research, creativity and lifelong learning, exhibits within the walls of the UM Libraries should strive to meet those goals.
This guide is for the following exhibit spaces:
- Two hallway cases (identified as North and South) on the second floor of the J.D. Williams Library, 141” (length) x 64” (height) x 16” (depth)
- Two flat table cases on the first floor of the J.D. Williams Library, 51.5” x 28”
- Mobile, open/unsecured display stand with multiple shelves.
Selection Criteria
The UML Exhibits Committee strongly encourages proposed exhibits meet at least some of the following criteria:
- Objective presentation (especially when dealing with potentially controversial topics)
- Ensures exhibition will not damage or endanger materials
- Follows accessibility guidelines (see below)
- Relevance to UM and UM Libraries missions, visions, special events, holidays, anniversaries, etc.
Proposal forms are available on the Library Exhibit webpage.
What Should an Exhibit Look Like?
The exhibition should evoke reactions from passersby and viewers that lead to transformation and inspiration. Exhibits should open eyes, fill people with excitement, deliver chills, turn frowns upside down, or generally provoke interest. The exhibit should not only stimulate the viewer intellectually, but also instigate social interaction and establish meaningful connections.
Exhibits that include diverse collection materials that present new information or existing knowledge in a different way are encouraged. The UM Libraries also urges collaboration between Library departments and the larger UM campus and community.
Exhibits can:
- Tell stories
- Explain ideas
- Inspire creativity
- Provoke discussion
- Take on timely subjects and issues
Viewers of varying physical sizes and abilities should be able to discern and interact with the exhibition. Labels should be legible and easy to understand. Orientation, spatial organization, and traffic flow are important considerations, as well.
For example, books should be displayed on bookstands, cradles, or supports. Because of natural and artificial lighting, the exhibitors should consider using facsimiles for fragile or light-sensitive materials.
Text in the exhibits, such as labels, should be printed on a high quality printer. Typeface should be a legible font like Times New Roman, Helvetica, Georgia, or Arial. The text should also have contrast. UM Libraries suggests:
- 28 pt for introductory texts (150-170 words)
- 18 pt for secondary or captions (20-30 words)
- 14 pt for more than three lines of copy
A small Exhibit Kit with some supplies will be available to exhibitors on a first-come, first-served basis. Large format printing is also available through the UML IdeaLab.
All exhibitors should submit the captions/labels and any other written materials to libraryexhibits@lib.olemiss.edu for posting on the Library Exhibits webpage and permanent storage on the Library Exhibits eGrove site. All exhibits will also have a QR code that links to this webpage. Student Disability Services, with sufficient advance notice, can be available for providing accessibility assistance.
Tips for Planning an Exhibit
Exhibits require effective planning, research and interpretation, considerations for care of the collections, design and fabrication, and more. Planning an exhibit should include considerations such as:
- Identifying the target audience
- Incorporating “community voices” in the development process, which should include diverse perspectives
- Conservation and security matters (e.g. facsimiles)
- Accessibility (images of the exhibit and all text produced for the display linked by a QR code to the eGrove exhibit site will allow visually impaired individuals to download the information to mobile devices and adjust font size to their needs)
- When utilizing cataloged library materials in an exhibit, catalog records must indicate use in an exhibit
General Guidelines
Exhibits should also have specific start and end dates. The end date can be extended depending upon consultation with the Library Exhibit Committee (contact via libraryexhibits@lib.olemiss.edu). Exhibits should be up for at least one month. Smaller exhibit spaces such as the flat table cases or the mobile kiosk can be changed out more frequently.
UM Libraries circulating materials that are used in a display will be checked out under the user name “Exhibit, Exhibit.” Bibliographies are recommended for exhibits that use UML materials so as to encourage circulation and community engagement with UM Libraries collections. Bibliographies and reference pages will be posted to the Library Exhibits eGrove site for accessibility and reproduction needs.
Contact
If you have any questions, please email libraryexhibits@lib.olemiss.edu.
Physical Address
J. D. Williams Library
1 Library Loop
University of Mississippi
University, MS 38677
Mailing Address
University of Mississippi Libraries
University of Mississippi
P.O. Box 1848
University, MS 38677
Oxford Mississippi is located about eighty miles south of Memphis, Tennessee, on Highway 6 between Batesville and Tupelo. The closest airports providing commercial jet service are the Memphis International Airport and the Tupelo Regional Airport.
The Oxford University Airport provides limited small aircraft service as well as private service. Amtrak provides service to Memphis via the “City of New Orleans” route.
There are two Libraries. The J.D. Williams Library houses the main collection, Archives and Special Collections, and the AICPA Library. The Science Library is located within the Thad Cochran Research Center.