About the HPS Collection

History of the Collection

The Indiana University Bloomington Libraries have collected materials to support the work of the Department of History and Philosophy of Science since the department was founded in 1960, the first department in the discipline at a U.S. university.

In addition to scholarly monographs and journals collected specifically for the study of the history and philosophy of science, the collection draws on IU's long history of strong science programs. Materials originally collected for working scientists now make up a significant part of the history of science collection.  There are primary source materials available in electronic, print, and microform format.

Strengths of the Collection

Strengths include medieval and early modern science, alchemy, and the history and philosophy of physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics.  The collection is complemented by the collection holdings for History and the rare books and manuscripts of the Lilly Library.