Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Stored off-site. Users must request boxes 48 hours in advance of desired use. Neither drop-in nor next-day requests can be fulfilled. For additional information, contact Special Collections.

Use Restrictions

See the University of Virginia Library’s use policy.

Preferred Citation

Records of the Tracy W. McGregor Library, 1929-1993, Accession #11263, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.

Custodial History

This material was transferred from the Rare Books Division of Special Collections to the Manuscript Division on November 1, 1996.

Biographical/Historical Information

Tracy W. McGregor (1869-1936), son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Taitt) McGregor, and his wife, Katherine Whitney McGregor (1873-1954) of Detroit, Michigan (married in 1901), both developed reputations as generous philanthropists and were involved in many social causes in Detroit. Early in his career, Tracy McGregor developed the McGregor Institute, a Christian center dedicated to the assistance and rehabilitation of homeless men, which endured for forty-three years. He also developed the Provident Loan Society as a reasonable alternative to the rapacious loan sharks who preyed upon those needing to borrow money. McGregor also worked to improve the Detroit Building Code, the education and care of underprivileged children, better care for the mentally sick, and was the chairman of the organizing committee which created the Detroit Council of Social Agencies and the Detroit Community Fund. The McGregor Fund, a nonprofit philanthropic corporation, was created in 1925 through gifts of the McGregors "to relieve the misfortunes and promote the well being of mankind."

Mr. McGregor also believed in the importance of supporting education and culture in society, and after he moved to Washington, D.C. in 1932, he began to earnestly collect Americana for his own pleasure and enjoyment. In 1936, McGregor visited the University of Virginia. As a result, he considered moving to Charlottesville but was prevented by his death which occurred on May 6, 1936, shortly after his visit. Upon his death, his will instructed the trustees of the McGregor Fund to give this collection to a college or university that would maintain and augment the collection and make the books available to scholars of American history. Because of his plans to move to Charlottesville, the McGregor Fund Trustees concluded that if Mr. McGregor had lived he would have established his library of American history at the University of Virginia. For this and other reasons, the McGregor Fund presented the Tracy W. McGregor Library to the University of Virginia on June 11, 1938, and his collection is now housed in the specially constructed McGregor Room of the Alderman Library.

Scope and Content

This collection consists of records pertaining to the McGregor Library, ca. 1929-1993, ca. 14,250 items (38 Hollinger boxes; 1 oversize folder and 2 index card boxes), including alphabetical correspondence of Tracy W. McGregor and the McGregor Fund with book dealers and librarians; correspondence and essays regarding the McGregor Library Reading List in American History; files on the McGregor Library publications, including typescripts, dummies, galleys and sales records; purchase records; McGregor Special Book Fund records; binding records; agendas, minutes, and correspondence of the McGregor Library Advisory Committee; reports by the McGregor curator; copies of the will, indenture, and deed of gift of Tracy W. McGregor; Description of the Tracy W. McGregor Library ; files on the McGregor Room and related topics; the McGregor Room seminars; the Mather collection; and other related correspondence and materials.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged in six series: Series I. Tracy W. McGregor Correspondence with Book Dealers, Librarians, Etc. (Boxes 1- 9); Series II. McGregor Library Advisory Committee Papers (Boxes 9-11); Series III. Publications from the McGregor Library and Related Materials. Subseries A. Manuscripts and Correspondence re Publications from the McGregor Library (Boxes 12-15). Subseries B. Miscellaneous Files concerning the Publications (Boxes 16-17); Series IV. Expenditures and Purchases. Subseries A. Tracy W. McGregor Purchase Records (Box 18). Subseries B. University of Virginia McGregor Library Purchase & Expenditure Records (Boxes 18- 23); Series V. Topical Files and Miscellaneous Files (Boxes 23-34); Series VI. McGregor Imprints Bibliography Working Files. Subseries A. Pre-Civil War Imprints (Boxes 34-35). Subseries B. Civil War Imprints and Files re the Proposed Civil War Catalog (Boxes 36-38)