Beinecke Lesser Antilles Collection

The Lesser Antilles Collection is among the preeminent collections of materials from these smaller Caribbean Islands. It includes approximately 1700 manuscripts dating from the 17th through the 19th century, as well as printed materials and maps. This digital collection currently comprises manuscripts cataloged in the bibliography The Beinecke Lesser Antilles Collection at Hamilton College, as well as the printed book Ten Views in the Island of Antigua. Additional manuscripts and printed materials will be added eventually.

The Library's collection is complemented by the Wellin Museum's holdings of prints, drawings, watercolors, and oil paintings dating from the 18th and 19th centuries. See Wellin's Beinecke Collection of the Lesser Antilles.

This collection was originally developed by Walter Beinecke, Jr., and donated to the Hamilton College Library. The Library has added to the collection in recent years when possible.

Recently, Hamilton College embarked on a partnership with the Nevis Historical and Conservation Society to digitize historical materials about Nevis.

There is a printed catalog of the Beinecke Collection (Hough, Samuel J. The Beinecke Lesser Antilles Collection at Hamilton College: A Catalogue of Books, Manuscripts, Prints, Maps, and Drawings, 1521-1860. Gainesville, University Press of Florida, 1994), 0813012929 (Hamilton call number, F2001 .H68 1994). A list of manuscripts added to the collection subsequent to Hough and Hough's book is available by contacting Mark Tillson, mtillson@hamilton.edu
View the finding aid online.