The collection contains papers related to the Smith College Astronomy Department. Founded in 1887 with the building of a new observatory and with Mary E. Byrd as Director, it became part of the Five College Astronomy Department starting in 1960. Records include a history of the department, booklets, course and faculty information, diagrams, account books, notebooks and photographs of astronomical observations, information on observatory instruments, correspondence, and notes and photographs of astronomical societies. Student work is also included, as well as information on the Five College Program.

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Smith College retains copyright of materials created as part of its business operations; however, copyright in other items in this collection may be held by their respective creators. For reproductions of materials that are governed by fair use as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission to cite or publish is required. For instances which may regard materials in the collection not created by Smith College, researchers are responsible for determining who may hold materials' copyrights and obtaining approval from them. Researchers do not need anything further from Smith College Special Collections to move forward with their use.