In 2007 the Delegation of the European Commission to the U.S.A., Washington, D.C. donated its library collection to the University Library System at the University of Pittsburgh. The gift is a virtually complete collection of official European Community documents published since the early 1950s containing materials that are not available through Europa initiated in the 1990s.
The highlight in the collection is the research files which are about 650 linear shelf feet of folders of documents arranged by subject. From the 1950s, Delegation librarians compiled these files, which contain duplicate copies of documents in the main collection. As noted recently by one scholar after spending one day in the research files:
“I am engaged in a long-term project on EU-South Asia Relations… When I opened the ‘India’ file, I was simply amazed at the comprehensive collection of documents I discovered. I found all the relevant documents at one place from the establishment of diplomatic relations in the early 1960s to the mid-1990s. It even contained some articles/news clippings of the time. On Pakistan, I found the communiqués of all the Joint Commission meetings, speeches by EU officials during their visits to Pakistan, press releases, etc.
As a regular visitor to Europe for well over a decade, I have conducted research on EU-South Asian Relations at a number of libraries… In none of these libraries have I been able to find such a comprehensive collection.
This Pitt EU Depositary Collection is an indispensable reference guide for those who are researching the earlier period – from the early 1950s till the early 1990s since subsequent documents are available on the EU website. The collection, especially the Research Files, provides an invaluable, comprehensive and a thorough collection of all relevant documents. This collection has truly been very painstakingly built piece-by-piece for over several decades; such dedication is truly admirable and extraordinary.”
Access to the Collection
The collection is closed shelf but may be accessed by appointment. There is a paper card catalog for years 1951-1989 and an electronic catalog for years 1990-2004. A Finding Aid has been created for scholars on the University Library Website. For more information about or access to the collection, please contact: Dr. Phil Wilkin - pwilkin@pitt.edu, Curator, European Union Delegation Collection.