About Archival Exhibitions:  Throughout the calendar year, Archives and Special Collections curates and installs one or more original exhibitions on the first floor of the library near the Circulation Desk.  Since 2013, we have curated a total of over forty exhibitions.  While the theme or focus of each exhibition varies, the archives strives to present original materials from ten different collections for the benefit of our academic community and the general public.  In addition, within the archives' Reading Room, a permanent exhibit case always features highlights of the repository's collections and is accessible whenever the archives is open or by appointment.  David Wyche (pictured left), an archives graduate student assistant and PhD candidate in American Studies at Penn State Harrisburg, and Elizabeth "Liz" McIlhenney (pictured right), former Archives Processing Assistant, have contributed towards curating many of our exhibitions and displays.

About Library Displays:  Smaller archival and/or informational displays are rotated throughout the calendar year and usually located on the first floor of the library near the Reference or Circulation Desks.  These displays typically commemorate an event or celebration, such as LGBTQ+ History Month, or another topic of interest to the college community.

About Outreach:  Since 2006, the archives has developed exhibitions and smaller displays in partnership with academic departments and student clubs on campus, local collectors, as well as collaborated with other area and national museums and historical organizations, including the following:  American Philatelic Society, Antique Automobile Club of America's Chris & Kathleen Koch Library and Research Center, Highspire Historical Society, Middletown Area Historical Society, Penn State All-Sports Museum, Penn State Harrisburg Center for Holocaust and Jewish Studies, Pennsylvania National Fire Museum, Pennsylvania State Archives, and Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission, Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibit Service (SITES), and THON.  Please contact Heidi Abbey Moyer if you or your organization would like to collaborate with the archives!

August 26 - December 20, 2024, New "Art Wall" Student Showcase

"Faces: Portraits of Students at Penn State Harrisburg"

Presented by the School of Humanities in collaboration with the Madlyn L. Hanes Library, we are pleased to announce the inaugural Student Art Showcase for Fall 2024.  Featuring nine self-portraits created by undergraduate students in studio art classes at the college, the paintings are now available for viewing on the "Art Wall."  This new area of the library is dedicated to displaying art owned by the college and highlighting the creative works of students at Penn State Harrisburg.  The "Art Wall" is located near the Reference Collection on the first floor of the library and near newly-acquired and comfortable seating and tables. 

March 11 - December 20, 2024, Exhibition

"Driving, Designing, and Defying:  Women Paving the Way in Automotive History"

In celebration of Women's History Month 2024, we are delighted to announce the launch of our newest exhibition that is now available for viewing on the first floor of the Hanes Library. This exhibition represents a multi-year partnership between the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) Chris & Kathleen Koch's Library & Research Center and Archives and Special Collections in the Madlyn L. Hanes Library at Penn State Harrisburg.  Featuring over 100 items in five display cases, it showcases women and their many contributions to automotive history. It includes a combination of original materials and facsimiles from the 1880s through the 2020s such as advertisements, automotive brochures, automobilia, books, magazine covers, photographs, road maps, and even a rare woman's vintage driving coat and dress from the early 1900s.

We held two opening receptions to celebrate the new exhibition on Tuesday, March 26, 2024.  Curators from the AACA and Penn State were available to meet visitors and we enjoyed light refreshments handmade by Sweet Velvet Macarons, a woman-owned, local bakery offering fresh-baked macaron creations!  

While all of our library display cases are currently being used in the exhibition, "Driving, Designing, and Defying: Women Paving the Way in Automotive History," a special display is located in the Reading Room of Archives and Special Collections.

On Display March 26 - December 20, 2024:  "Forty-Five Years After the Meltdown:  Remembering the Accident at TMI in 2024"

Thursday, March 28, 2024, marked the 45th anniversary of the nation's worst nuclear accident, which happened at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant, located on an island in the Susquehanna River near Middletown, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania.  This exhibition, located in the Archives and Special Collections' Reading Room on the library's 3^rd floor, features books, rare ephemera, and other unique memorabilia about TMI including recent acquisitions from area residents and local donors. 

PLEASE NOTE:  Viewing of the exhibition is by appointment only on weekdays (Monday - Wednesday).  As availability of the archives is limited, visitors are encouraged to schedule a visit at least two weeks in advance of the requested date/time. Please contact Heidi Abbey Moyer (hna2@psu.edu), Archivist and Humanities Reference Librarian, for more information. 

If you are interested in learning more about the TMI accident, please visit one of the resources listed below:

• Penn State University Libraries' Subject Guide:  Three Mile Island: An Interdisciplinary Research Guide
• "Radioactive: The Women of Three Mile Island (2023)," is a documentary that is now available via streaming on Apple+ and Amazon Prime Video.  The film was released on Tuesday, March 12, 2024.
• "Meltdown: Three Mile Island (2022)", a limited series (4 episodes) available on Netflix via subscription.

Please join us this fall when, on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, we'll be participating in "Archives Day" at the PA Capital Complex in downtown Harrisburg, PA.  Archives and Special Collections will be featured along with representatives from the PA House Archives, the PA Senate Library, PA State Archives and the PA State Library.  We will be giving away Penn State University Libraries swag and other free archives promotional items.

Every year in the month of October, we celebrate #AskAnArchivist Day!  Please visit our Facebook page to connect with us and ask the archivist questions. Also during the month of October, Archives and Special Collections celebrates American Archives Month. Join the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference (MARAC) and/or the national professional organization for archivists and records managers, the Society of American Archivists, to raise awareness of and support for archives!