Binding wheat in Obion County, Tennessee, 1913., Courtesy of the Tennessee State Library and Archives, Looking Back at Tennessee Photograph Collection, Accession No. 1988-017, Negative No. OB060.

What TSLAFriends makes possisble

Preserving Tennessee’s history. Expanding access. Inspiring discovery.

Membership dues, charitable gifts and volunteer support allow the TSLAFriends to respond to opportunities that fall outside the Library & Archives’ regular operating budget. Since the organization was established in 2010, its members have helped acquire significant historical materials, support public programs, encourage research and recognize the professionals who preserve Tennessee’s documentary heritage.

Historically significant records sometimes appear at auction or in private sales. Without timely action, materials that document Tennessee’s people and communities may disappear into private collections and become inaccessible to the public.

TSLAFriends helps the Library & Archives acquire selected materials so they can be preserved, cataloged and made available to future researchers.

Concord Baptist Church records

After learning that a historic church record book was being offered through an online auction, TSLAFriends negotiated its purchase and donated it to the Library & Archives. The volume documents the activities of Concord Baptist Church near the Davidson-Williamson county line, including meeting minutes, baptisms, new members and membership changes from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Ruskin Cave photograph

The Friends purchased and donated a rare photograph taken around 1910 showing students from Ruskin College gathered at Ruskin Cave in Dickson County. The image preserves an important glimpse of an educational community associated with the Ruskin cooperative movement and reflects a period when more Tennessee families were beginning to send both sons and daughters away from home to attend school.

Other acquisitions

TSLAFriends has also helped purchase manuscripts, photographs, books and other materials related to Tennessee history. Each acquisition adds another voice, community or experience to the public record.

Why private support matters

State funding sustains the Tennessee State Library & Archives’ essential responsibilities, but private support allows TSLAFriends to act when special opportunities arise.

A rare document may appear at auction. A public program may need additional funding. A collection may require digitization. A special exhibit or preservation initiative may fall outside the regular budget.

That is where the Friends can make a difference.

Like effective Friends organizations elsewhere, TSLAFriends provides flexible support for collections, programs, public access and special projects that supplement—not replace—public funding.