Rare books and manuscripts
Search our collection of 73,000 print materials from 1430 to 1945, with strengths in anatomy, women’s health, surgery, natural history, and pharmacy.
Wangensteen Historical Library
The Wangensteen Historical Library of Biology and Medicine collections contain materials and objects that broadly represent health, medicine, and biological sciences from 1430 to 1945.
Collections
Digitized collections
The digitized collections of the Wangensteen Historical Library are freely available online. They cover a broad range of topics from East Asian History to Clara Barton’s diaries.
Artifacts
Our artifact collection contains 8,000 objects, including pharmaceutical, medical and surgical equipment, instruments, and products.
Featured content
A Glimpse into Historical Pharma Artifacts
In Spring 2024, two DFRACS (Dean’s First-Year Research & Creative Scholars) interns researched pharmaceuticals at the Wangensteen, culminating in an online exhibit.
From amputations to obstetrics to quackery, come discover some of the fascinating medical artifacts from the Wangensteen’s collections!
The First Rescue Inhaler for Asthma was a Cigarette
Explore the Wangensteen's collection of inhalers, atomizers, vaporizers, and more in this online exhibit by intern Jack Quale.
Visit
Wangensteen Library
- Today’s U Card hours: Closed
- [email protected] (1-2 business days)
- 612-626-6881
-
2-340 Phillips-Wangensteen Building
516 Delaware Street SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455 - All University libraries
Prepare for your visit
Materials from the Wangensteen Historical Library are available by appointment.
Reference consultations
Meet with curators to locate materials for your research topic.
Course support
Collaborate with curators to support student learning and student interactions with texts, historical images, manuscripts, and objects.
Engagement and outreach
Partner with the library to create or enhance conversations about the history of health, medicine, and biological sciences through exhibits, lectures, and material loans.
Fund your research
Learn more about travel grants that support in-depth research drawing on the library’s holdings and staff expertise.
About Owen Wangensteen
In the 1960s, Dr. Owen H. Wangensteen, distinguished surgeon, became the force behind the creation of the library that bears his name.
Exhibits & events
Current exhibit
Tools of the Trade: Uncovering the Artifacts of the Wangensteen Vault
From amputations to obstetrics to quackery, come discover some of the fascinating medical artifacts from the Wangensteen’s collections!
Events
- Exhibit opening: Disembodied / Reembodied
to
Wangensteen Historical Library, 2-340 Phillips-Wangensteen Building (PWB)
Online exhibits
Secret Lives of Books
This exhibit celebrates the stories of our books — from the stories woven in their bindings to the comments written on their pages by readers.
Downton Abbey: Behind the Scenes of Health and Illness
Our library holdings come together to illuminate the medical themes threaded throughout Masterpiece Theater’s wildly popular Downton Abbey.
Journeying through a 17th c. apothecary manuscript
This exhibit is centered on a 17th-century apothecary manuscript from Toulouse, France, and a student’s research project involving translating the manuscript and mapping where in the world the ingredients may have been sourced.