Secret Spaces and Hidden Places – Part 2

Follow our founder, Bishop John Strachan, as he takes you into some of Trinity’s forgotten spaces and unusual places. In this issue, we explore the vaults and stacks that keep some of Trinity’s most precious treasures safe for generations to come.

Leave your comments below to let us know where we should go next or to share your stories of your hidden corners of the Trinity College campus.

The Saunderson Rare Books Room

John W. Graham Library

John Strachan cut-out in the Saunderson Rare Books Room

close up of books in the Saunderson Rare Books Room

I remember this one.

Some of these books belonged to Bishop Strachan himself.

The Saunderson Rare Books Room in the John W. Graham Library is home to an impressive list of special collections. Historically, the Trinity library’s rare books and special collections have been mainly theological, with strength in Anglicanism. More recently, other important collections have been acquired, such as the Churchill, G8/G20, and Upjohn-Waldie collections, the latter including the works of Eric Gill, several incunabula (a book or pamphlet printed before 1501), travel narratives, and other books that illustrate the history of books and fine printing from the 15th to the mid-20th century.

The Saunderson Rare Books Room, funded by William and Meredith Saunderson, is accessible by appointment. If you would like to request a viewing contact the library at ask.grahamlibrary@utoronto.ca or by phone at 416-978-5851 to make advanced arrangements.

Do you have your free alumni library card?

Alumni can access the Graham Library with our special alumni library card. Available during business hours Monday to Friday, the card is free to all Trinity alumni. Note: The Trinity alumni library card grants access only to the Graham Library. Alumni can apply also for a U of T library card (for a fee).

The Archives

The Trinity College Archives Storage Vaults

We do still use the old vaults as well.

Let's move on, shall we?

The Trinity College Archives moved into a beautiful new space in 2016. While you have may have visited the new archives or seen pictures in Trinity magazine, you may not be aware of the new state-of-the-art storage system. The archives has 3,000 linear feet of archival records on 22 compact shelves, including about 4,000 photographs and approximately 3,000 architectural records.