The books that we read in our childhood often guide us through the world all of our lives. They make us reflect upon our actions and how they can impact those around us; and, perhaps most of all, they outline the values of our shared culture. And, like all literature, these books have evolved throughout time. At my alma mater, the University of Florida’s Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature traces that transformation, encompassing some of the world’s finest examples of what is now affectionately referred to as children’s literature.

The Baldwin Library offers more than 11,000 titles to explore online. The digital database encompasses everything from a 1950 edition of Little Red Riding Hood to a 1875 version of Aladdin. Books range from the 19th to the 20th centuries, and, in addition to lesser-known gems, gather such classics as Cinderella, Rip Van Winkle, Gulliver’s Travels, and Sleeping Beauty, among countless others. Each entry features information about the volume’s subject, genre, date, and place of publication, and a PDF file, reproduced with stunning clarity, of the book itself.

The Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature in the Department of Special Collections at the University of Florida’s George A. Smathers Libraries contains more than 115,000 volumes published in the United States and Great Britain from the mid-1600s to present day. The Library also has small holdings in manuscript collections, original artwork, and assorted ephemera such as board games, puzzles, and toys. The Baldwin Library is known for comparative editions of books, with special emphasis on Robinson Crusoe, Pilgrim’s Progress, Aesop’s Fables, and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The Library also has the largest collection of Early American Juvenile Imprints of any academic institution in the United States.

Other strengths and distinctions of the Baldwin Library include: alphabet books, marginalia and inscriptions, nonfiction from the 20th century, Little Golden Books, religious tracts, and illustrated editions from the Golden Age of Children’s Literature. Scholars worldwide use the Baldwin Library for research in morality tales and religious tracts, conduct of life, gender roles, comparative editions, and toy and movable books.

For more information on the collection, please contact lib-baldwin@uflib.ufl.edu.