Detail from The History of Learning in Florida Mural in Smathers Library Grand Reading Room

Special & Area Studies Collections

Our materials and personnel advance the University’s research mission and spark the minds of its students.

170,000 SASC provides access to over 170,000 digital items, equating to millions of pages, representing materials from its 14 distinct collections.

Explore the digital collections

427,583 We welcomed 255,312 people in-person and 172,271 users to our webpage in 2025.

Come visit us

650 Over the course of seven years, we have taught more than 650 students enrolled in Pirates & Power (Quest course)

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our spaces

what’s new

Dragons in the Library

Category: Exhibits

A new exhibit celebrates the world’s long fascination with dragons and their appearance across many different cultures in art, science, and mythology.

Drawing of a dragon breathing fire.

Ebb and Flow

Category: Exhibits

A new exhibit explores the history of the water that flows through the Panama Canal.

Drawing of a bridge and Spillway around the Panama Canal.

featured video

Working in Special Collections as a UF Student

Dozens of students work in the collections every year on projects large and small. In this video, a recent graduate of UF, Catherine Ziegler, describes her experience working with the different researchers and collections over her time as a student. Our congratulations to Catherine, as well as all of our student workers: current, past, and future.

our department & building

Our Department

Who We Are

We promote, preserve, and grow our collections to create new knowledge from old.

A display of pop-up books from the Baldwin Childrens Library

contact us

Directory

Special and Area Studies Collections Faculty and Staff

Detail of Hobrook mural with self-portrait