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Thanks to a generous donation from Chester Kirk, CEO of AmTrol, Inc.
and founder of Edgehill Newport, Brown University has established the Chester
H. Kirk Collection on Alcoholism and Alcoholics Anonymous. The collection,
one of the largest of its type in the country, contains over 15,000 items,
ranging from a leaf from the 1493 Nuremberg Chronicle depicting a drunken
Noah to movies and videos.
Mr. Kirk, well-known for his civic and philanthropic activities, was
particularly concerned for those suffering and recovering from the disease
of alcoholism. He was involved in organizations at the national and local
levels, including Brown's Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies. Dr.
David Lewis, Director of the Center, indicated that the material, which
will be housed in the Library, will be used to disseminate modern research
policies to state, local, and national agencies by means of newsletters
and the Internet. Scholarly use of the collection, whether by researchers
at Brown or by outside scholars, will be boosted by the fact that the collection
is in academic hands and will, when cataloged, be accessible in a national
database. The gift also nicely complements existing holdings throughout
the Library system.
The collection, amassed by antiquarian bookseller Charles Bishop since
1976, was acquired last Fall. He purchased titles singly and in bulk from
every source imaginable from flea markets and other booksellers to the
Anti-Saloon League, which had a tractor trailer load of their publications
to dispose of. The range of formats is just as diverse, including books,
pamphlets, journals and magazines, newspapers, prints, audio and video
tapes, photographs, government publications, autographs, posters, musical
scores, and catalogs. Bishop has noted that there has been a growing interest
in collecting alongside the expanding academic interest in the field over
the years he put the collection together.
The major strengths of the collection are in the history of the temperance
movement, with emphasis on Alcoholics Anonymous, and aspects of the consumption
of alcohol. AA has just celebrated its 60th anniversary, and is considered
the core from which over 1000 other self-help groups evolved, according
to Dr. Lewis. Subjects covered range from drinking customs, the rum trade,
and taxation to fiction, ethnic studies, and the Twelve Step programs to
groups like MADD, the WCTU, and Al-Anon.
The majority of works in the collection are American, although there
are publications from England, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. Featured
titles include the first book published in the United States on alcoholism,
The Mighty Destroyer Displayed (1774) by A Lover of Mankind (Anthony Benezet),
runs of prohibition magazines and newspapers, like those of the Anti-Saloon
League's political arm, The American Issue, which was the only "single
issue" party in American history to amend the Constitution.
At a symposium celebrating the gift, president Vartan Gregorian said,
"I am delighted that Chester Kirk, who has done so much for higher education
in general and for research in drugs and alcohol abuse in particular, has
now enabled Brown's libraries to build an important archive of materials
that will illuminate the history and development of sensible policies and
attitudes toward alcohol."
Mr. Kirk included in his gift, funds to maintain and catalog this vast
collection. Once cataloged, it will be distributed among several of the
University libraries according to subject or rarity. As Merrily E. Taylor,
Joukowsky Family University Librarian, stated, "This is the type of collection
that's of interest to all different fields, because of its sociological
aspects, medical aspects, and cultural aspects. It's also a very significant
acquisition for people interested in the history of self-help groups in
America."
Sadly, Mr. Kirk passed away just prior to the publication of this article,
so the collection serves as a fitting memorial to him and his efforts.
It is hoped that his gift will encourage other donors to contribute like
materials so that the collection will continue to grow and serve the academic
community at Brown and beyond.-M.C.
The Kirk Collection is open
to anyone interested in doing research on A.A. or any other alcoholism subject.
Any A.A. archivist, collector, author, student, Ph.D. or drunk may use the library and
collection for research.
The Kirk Collection is constantly expanding and anyone interested in donating material
may do so by contacting one of the following:
