Special Collections Research Center Access Tools: There are a variety of tools available to guide you in finding materials in the Special Collections Research Center (SCRC). Don't forget that you also may come into the SCRC in person and consult with the staff member on duty for guidance.
General
Conway Whittle Papers -- Papers of Conway Whittle II of Norfolk, Va. and of his two sisters, Mary Eliza Whittle Neale and Frances Munford Whittle Lewis. There are items concerning the earlier generation of the family, represented by Conway Whittle I and his brother Fortescue Whittle, Norfolk merchants. The collection is particularly strong in the subject areas of social history and naval history (including personal and official correspondence of William Lewis [1781-1815] and several letters of his namesake William Lewis Herndon who served in the Navy and went down in the sinking of the ship Central America in 1857).
Panama
Edith M. Clayes Travel Diary -- Travel diary of Edith M. Clayes of a voyage from California to Washington, D.C. Clayes visited, among other places, the Panama Canal; Havana, Cuba; Key West, St. Augustine and Miami, Florida; Richmond, Virginia; and the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland areas. She writes about her personal experiences as well as the history of the places visited. The cover of the diary is made of wood board with a leather spine. The cover is attached with hob nails, is gilded in places and has a picture of Madonna of the Gauduca by "Raphael" Florence.
Diary (Panama) -- Diary, 1935-1936, of an unknown woman on a trip to Panama. Entries include descriptions of the country, the people she meets, and an illness that she contracts while there. She also describes her voyage back to the United States, her treatment, and her travels through Los Angeles, California.
John G. and Verna O. Francis Diary -- Travel diary of John G. and Verna O. Francis, 1931, describing their sea voyage from New York City to the Philippine Islands, via the Panama Canal, San Fransisco and Hawaii on board of the transport ship US Grant.
Donald Mullikan Letters -- Letters, 1942-1945, of Donald Mullikan written to his sister, Lois Mullikan. Donald was stationed in multiple areas during the war, including the Canal Zone in Panama.
Cyril Bazek, Sr. Papers -- Contains letters written by Cyril Buzek, Sr. to his family during his time in the Navy, mostly during World War II. The following information was provided by the seller: "184 letter collection all handwritten by "Cyril Buzek Sr." while serving in the U.S. Navy from January 1945 to August 1945. There are a total of 184 letters many of which are two or three pages long. Just about every single letter has its original envelope that it was mailed in with it. The group consist of 115 letters written by the Sailor while he was stationed at Camp Peary, Virginia. There are 69 letters that he wrote while stationed in the "Panama Canal Zone" and another 31 letters he wrote while serving in the "Balboa Zone."