Special Collections
The Stockton Archives holds many of the papers and other memorabilia of Cumberland University’s long history, as well as a collection of old and rare books including an original edition of the War of the Rebellion series. The Library’s Tennessee Collection focuses on state and regional materials with an emphasis on Wilson County. The Military History Collection contains materials on military history around the globe. The Library also has a collection of over 3,000 juvenile and young adult books. The juvenile and young adult book collections contain Caldecott and Newbery winners and other award-winning titles in the area of children's and young adult literature.
George W. Franz Historical Research Collection
The George W. Franz Historical Research Collection of 1,836 volumes represents a great depth and breadth of resources in early American history. Biographies and personal papers of prominent individuals, examinations of colonial life in urban and agricultural settings, and in-depth exploration of the birth of American political parties, including especially the impact of Martin Van Buren, eighth President of the United States, together offer students a wealth of research materials on this foundational period.
Dr. George W. Franz served Pennsylvania State University for three decades. In addition to his role as a faculty member, Franz acted as a PSU administrator in various capacities. He was Director of Academic Affairs at the Brandywine campus for ten years and served as Interim Chancellor for the Brandywine campus in 2013-2014. Dr. Franz was instrumental in directing the Papers of Martin Van Buren project at Penn State Brandywine. He began on the project as Associate Editor (1975-1976), then oversaw completion of the project as Editor (1976-1986) and Project Director (1976-1988). Under his leadership, the project produced 55 microfilm reels containing approximately 13,000 documents from over 260 different repositories. Since 2015, Franz has served on the advisory board of the Papers of Martin Van Buren at Cumberland University, which is producing print and digital editions of the eighth president's papers. His donation of books to Cumberland University is intended to assist this project, as well as to provide the University's students with more resources for historical research.
James V. Miller Native American Collection
The James V. Miller Native American Collection consists of 168 books collected by Lebanon native James Victor Miller (1939-2008). Mr. Miller co-authored with Dr. Kevin E. Smith of Middle Tennessee State University one of the books in the collection: Speaking with the Ancestors: Mississippi Stone Statues of the Tennessee Cumberland Region (2009). Mr. Miller's obituary succinctly traced his deep and long=standing historical interests: "His early interest in the Civil War, by the time of the first grade, and his curiosity about the first residents of the area, American Indians, matured quickly into scholastic endeavors and led to his history teaching career [30 years at Lebanon High School] and later contributions as a noted lecturer and writer. He was an authority on local history, Middle Tennessee Indian cultures and the battles of the Civil War." In addition to working alongside Lebanon resident Jack Cato and Sue Siens to establish the City of Lebanon Museum and History Center in 1997, Mr. Miller hoped to see a Visitors Center established at the Sellars Farm State Archeological Site, maintained by the Friends of Sellers Mounds, and where sketches Miller made of many of the Native Americans who inhabited the area are displayed. Jack Cato, the friend to whom Miller entrusted his Native American book collection for safe-keeping until a Sellars Mound Visitor's Center is in place, has in turn entrusted the collection to Vise Library, via long-term loan, to care for and make available for research by Cumberland students and other scholars.