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University of Southern Maine
Libraries & Learning

Special Collections Faculty Guide: Gorham & Lewiston

Guide for faculty with information about active learning instruction sessions in Special Collections.

Class Visits on the Gorham Campus & Lewiston Auburn Campus

Primary sources in Special Collections can't travel to Gorham or Lewiston, but there are great options for primary source instruction on both campuses.

Franco-American Collection

The Franco-American Collection, located on the Lewiston-Auburn Campus, offers class visits in Lewiston, Gorham, and Portland, where students engage with materials that date from the late 19th century to the present day, and represent diverse aspects of Franco-American history and culture. Contact Anna Faherty at anna.faherty@maine.edu or visit https://usm.maine.edu/franco-american-collection/classes/.

Historic Buildings on the Gorham Campus

Buildings can be "read" just like primary sources. We bring along facsimiles of primary source documents about Gorham campus buildings to show how the built environment and primary sources work together to help us understand our surroundings.

Digital Commons & Library Databases

Digitized primary sources from our collections combine with primary and secondary sources in our library databases to show and contextualize knowledge of local history and University history.

Art Gallery

How does primary source analysis relate to formal analysis of artworks? Students can compare and contrast both methods using current exhibitions in the USM Art Gallery.

Let's Try Something New!

How were people educated in the 1900s? What is the history of your field of study? What is the LGBTQ+ history of your campus? Let's work together to answer these questions!

Reading the Academy Building as a Primary Source

Photo collage courtesy of Dr. Lisa Hibl, Russell Scholars Program.