Seminary Textbook Collection

This collection is composed of textbooks published in the 19th century which are known to have been used in the courses of study at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary. (The seal of the Seminary is shown below.) Identification of the books has been made from the listings given in the school catalogues from the opening in 1837 to 1888 when the school obtained a collegiate charter.

The "course of study and instruction" for the entering students in 1837 contained English grammar, geography, ancient and modern history, politics, botany, rhetoric, Euclid and human physiology; and the student was expected to arrive with a good knowledge of Adam's new arithmetic. Combined with the school catalalogues, the Textbook Collection allows for a comparison of Mount Holyoke's curriculum to that of contemporary institutions of higher education throughout the eastern United States and documents changes to the curriculum during the first 50 years.

In addition to the textbooks, the Collection contains selections that the students were advised to bring with them, such as a book of Psalms and a collection of vocal music.

Most of the books in this Collection were acquired from descendants of those early students.

Following is a listing of the textbooks used from the opening of the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in 1837 until the granting of the collegiate charter in 1888. The list is divided in three parts.