INTRODUCTION
The University of Mississippi Medical Center opened in 1955. The first designated library facility to house the institution’s archives did not come into being until twenty-seven years later when the Learning Resource Center building opened in 1982 and provided space for the Rowland Medical Library. The 790 square foot archive facility was located on the second floor of the library. The facility was comprised of a reading room with a separate office and a second room with closed stacks and a walk-in safe. The archive was later relocated and enlarged in 1995. The present facility has 4,555 square feet divided into three rooms and remains on the library’s second floor. The entrance to the archives opens into the Guyton History Room. A second room consists of closed stacks and archival shelving, office, and a large walk-in safe. The third room is equipped for the preservation and restoration of archival and other library materials. The Division of Public Affairs archives documents and other materials related to the Medical Center in this facility. The archive does collect media in different formats but presently excludes artifacts. Because of budget restrictions, a professional archivist librarian has never been hired to manage the institution’s archives. A professional medical librarian presently coordinates the Medical Center’s archive functions.