OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Its entrance is a glass window full of rare and unique history; cultural history that goes back many generations.
"It's often referred to as the treasure room of an academic library," Dave Richards, dean of library services at the University of Nebraska-Omaha said.
That treasure room, known as the archives and special collections room, holds unique history to Omaha and beyond.
It's now home to the largest-ever book donation at UNO by the Jewish Federation of Omaha.
"Some of these books are absolutely beautiful," Richards said. "They are good examples of Judaica. There's wonderful stories in these books."
The Jewish Federation of Omaha has a library of books, some for several decades, that was kept and maintained by researchers.
The books go beyond history. You can read about cooking, fiction, biographies, art and more. Amy Schindler, director of Archives and Special Collections at UNO said this will be a huge benefit to students.
"Thanks to the breath of this collection, it really will be usable to students in a variety of majors across the University of Nebraska Omaha," Schindler said.
So far, they have more than 8,000 Jewish books for people to come and choose from. That number will increase to over 36,000 volumes in the coming years.
Schindler said they will let people check out certain books, while other rare books must be kept in the area.
"They're actually used in our archives and special collections reading room, which is always supervised by an employee," she said.
It's not only just open to students, the public can get in on the books too.
"We are very honored to have this collection that belongs to the community, that will be accessible to the community," Schindler said.
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