The Special Collections/University Archives now consist of three components: rare books, manuscripts, and University Archives. The rare books area which originally sought to house books written by African American authors has now been expanded to include other titles and in particular local histories of the Southside area of Virginia and histories of Black Colleges and works written by VSU faculty and alumni. There are a number of manuscript groups, all of which document the history of blacks in Virginia since 1772. Included in this group are the Luther Porter Jackson Family Papers, the Colson-Hill Family Papers, the Virginia Teachers Association Records, and the Prince Edward County (VA) Free School Records. The University Archives consist of School records dating from February 1883. The University Archives are the official records maintained by law [The Virginia Public Records Act, {} 42.1-76]. The records are divided into groups and date from 1883. In these record groups may be found, minutes of the board of visitors, annual reports, and records of students documenting their experiences at the University since 1883.