Fryer Library collection development policy

Fryer Library is a recognised research collection of Australian literary works and critical studies on Australian literature, and collects:

• Manuscript papers and archives of Australian authors. These are proactively sought, particularly the personal papers of literary and popular authors published by the University of Queensland Press.
• To support this, contemporary publications are selectively acquired including monographs and anthologies, literary journals, fiction, essays, poetry, literary criticism, and literary biographies. Literary works that have been shortlisted for Australian literary awards are given priority.
• For authors of Australian literature, particularly those whose papers we collect and/or those that have won literary awards, we may acquire new editions of their works, and editions in languages other than English.
• Publications and administrative records of University of Queensland Press.
• Australian theatre related material, including play scripts, memorabilia, and administrative records of local theatres with a focus on Queensland.

Children’s books are generally not collected.

Gaps in physical published holdings are retrospectively filled through donation and occasionally by purchase.

Fryer Library collects non-government architectural records, plans and drawings, photographs, construction specifications, correspondence and documents related to the work of Queensland architects and buildings designed and built in Queensland.

Acquisitions are made to support teaching in the School of Architecture and the research of heritage professionals and members of the public. Electrical and engineering plans, such as drainage drawings, are generally not retained.

Since the 1980s the Fryer Library has developed a national reputation for collections relating to the history of political, social, cultural, and industrial movements in Queensland. These collections document the history of organisations and activities for gender and sexual equality, land rights and justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, peace, material documenting the experience of refugees seeking asylum in Australia, protection of the environment, workers’ rights, democratic rights and radical change. Published and unpublished material in these areas will be selectively acquired.

The Fryer Library documents the history of the University by collecting the publications and records of the University colleges, associations, and societies. This includes photographs, reminiscences of staff and students, official publications including university calendars, handbooks, gazettes, magazines, and histories of the University.

The personal papers of University scholars are considered on a case-by-case basis for addition to the Fryer Library collection and may be acquired where they contribute further to the understanding of a particular topic, the social and cultural contexts of a particular discipline, or to the life and times of distinguished scholars connected to The University of Queensland.

Official records of the University of Queensland are held in the University Archives. The responsibilities, objectives, functions and administrative arrangements of the Archives are set out in the Archives Policy. 

Over the years, University of Queensland academics and researchers have deposited material with a focus on Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islanders languages and culture in Queensland. This has included anthropological and linguistic material. Material has also been acquired on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights and activism. The Fryer Library will continue to acquire material that enhances and strengthens existing collections.

Materials are selectively acquired that support research into related collections held in the University’s heritage museums. For example, manuscript papers or publications relating to artworks held in the UQ Art Museum or objects in the UQ Anthropology Museum or the RD Milns Antiquities Museum may be acquired to support a deeper understanding of these collections.

Prior to 2024, the Fryer Library had a restricted access book (RAB) and journal collection. In 2023, an audit of the RAB collection and the general books collections saw the creation of our Rare collections. The Rare collections encompass a broad range of subject areas. Many were acquired as part of the Father Leo Hayes bequest in 1967. They support the teaching and research needs of the University of Queensland, visiting researchers and the broader community. Rare published items are assessed according to the following criteria: primacy; uniqueness; rarity; provenance; books with significant bookplates, inscriptions, or marginalia; value; age; curiosities; and fragility.

Historically, the Fryer Library’s collecting parameters were broader and included general works on Queensland and Australian history, Australian art, political election ephemera, international science fiction and fantasy, art exhibition catalogues, theatre programmes, Papua New Guinea related publications, and other areas.

In consideration of current priorities, offers of manuscript material may be referred to other collecting institutions with strengths in these areas. Offers of published materials may be referred to the relevant University of Queensland Library Faculty Services librarians for consideration.

Deposit copies of University of Queensland research higher degree theses submitted in print are included in the Fryer Library’s print collection. From 2008, higher degree by research (HDR) theses have been submitted to the Library in electronic form. Both the digital versions, and digitised copies of print theses, are made available via the institutional repository, UQ eSpace.

• material that falls outside the scope of the Fryer Library’s collecting areas
• newspapers that are available online, on microform, or in newspaper collections held by the University of Queensland Library or other institutions
• ‘housekeeping’ papers of little research value, e.g., electricity bills, bank statements, cheque book stubs
• political election ephemera
• broader works on Australian history and politics unless there is a strong connection to The University of Queensland
• offers of published and unpublished material relating to Queensland people and places will be referred to the John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland unless there is a significant connection to The University of Queensland, or the fields of Australian literature and drama, Queensland architecture, and in cases where the Fryer Library already holds their papers or records relating to the entity
• public records that are the responsibility of the National or State Archives
• photocopies and digital copies of published material held by Fryer Library or other collecting institutions or are available electronically
• material offered by donors seeking to impose excessive and/or unreasonable access restrictions including personal libraries that are to be kept together because of gift restrictions
• unless it is seen to be particularly important to retain the collection intact, or individual items contain important annotations or other copy specific features (for example bindings or marks of ownership), the Fryer Library does not accept duplicate material.

Include: 

• collection material or entire manuscript collections with minimal historical and research significance
• items or collections that offer no new information or knowledge, and that researchers are very unlikely to have an active interest in today or in the future
• onerous access restrictions
• items that are missing
• items in poor condition or unsalvageable
• repatriation to traditional owners
• public records.

Material may be discarded from manuscript collections, without deaccessioning, when they are publications, duplicates, newspaper cuttings (that are not curated) and photocopies.

• items that are irreparable and in poor condition including mould, vinegar syndrome, and vermin infestations
• items that are not relevant to past or current collection development guidelines of the Fryer Library
• excessive multiple copies of items
• items that have been inaccurately treated as ‘rare’ or no longer deemed ‘rare’.

• Transfer to the University of Queensland Library’s warehouse or another collecting institution.
• Donation to the University’s Alumni Association to assist in fundraising.

• Returns of estrays to relevant government archives.
• Sale at public auction or by tender.
• Discard or destroy, particularly if items are in poor condition.
• Gifts received under the Cultural Gifts Program are not permitted to be returned to the donor or family.