Miniature marvels: A librarian’s lifelong passion finds a home at UC

In the mid-1950s Melinda C. Wells Brown moved to Cincinnati to live with her great aunt and became captivated by a collection of miniature Shakespeare plays her great aunt kept on display. Brown came to Cincinnati after the death of her father, and without her great aunt’s guidance and generosity, she would not have been able to continue her education. Her great aunt’s holistic support was instrumental during Brown’s undergraduate studies at the University of Cincinnati — where she worked in the University Library (now known as Blegen Library) and uncovered a deep passion for literature and libraries.

Brown earned her degree in French studies in 1957 and later pursued a master’s degree in library science at Rutgers University. Her great aunt’s gift of the Shakespeare plays inspired Brown to start her own collection of miniature books. Defined as books smaller than three inches in any dimension, miniature books became a lifelong fascination for Brown. Over her lifetime she amassed 738 miniature books.

In 2003, UC received its first assortment of miniature books from Rabbi Kalman L. Levitan, chairman and founder of the Miniature Book Society.  When news of Brown’s miniature book collection reached the Archives and Rare Books Library at UC, Chris Harter and his team were thrilled to expand the miniature book collection in their archives.

“The Miniature Books Collection of Melinda C. Wells Brown is a wonderful example of how UC works with donors to ensure we're preserving the materials and making them accessible,” says Harter, who is the university archivist and head of the Archives and Rare Books Library.

What made UC especially meaningful to the Brown family was its commitment to accessible research and the knowledge that the collection would be housed in the Blegen Library, the very same library where a young Melinda Brown once worked to help fund her education. Dr. Brown was also honored to learn that the collection could be used by students, as it aligned perfectly with her mother’s values. “The knowledge that the books would be in a place where students would be able to peruse aspects of the collection and use the books as resources in their research? My mother would love that!” Dr. Brown states.

Brown’s collection is already shaping the student experience at UC. Sophia Sheppard, A&S ’27, serving as an student associate in the Archives and Rare Books Library, was instrumental in curating and cataloging the miniature book collections. “I love history and old books; they're just printed differently, that's very interesting to me. I was excited about the Melinda C. Wells Brown Collection because I was already trying to curate a display out of the Levitan collection. I was very hopeful that we'd be receiving more texts,” Sophia shares.

Featured image at top: Chris Harter and student associate Sophia Sheppard in front of the Melinda C. Wells Brown Miniature Book Collection at the Archives and Rare Books Library. Photo/Madeline Schrand.