The Rakow Library was founded as part of The Corning Museum of Glass in 1951.  It has an exceptional collection of materials for anyone interested in learning more about glass – history, techniques, manufacturers, formulas, photos, and more.  The Rakow Research Library’s Special Collections comprise rare and unique information resources, including archival materials, manuscript books, and many of the Museum’s works of art on paper, such as prints and design drawings.  They also house many Steuben gems such as Frederick Carder’s lab notebooks and factory line drawings.

In 2009, Marshall Ketchum and Scott Hansen had been conducting research on Steuben glass leveraging the Special Collections at the Rakow Library.  They came across some boxes of old photographs that appeared to show Steuben glass.  Due to cost limitations these photos had largely remained untouched since the major Corning flood in 1972 and had not yet been indexed at the library.  In partnership with the Rakow staff, Marshall and Scott carefully separated the photographs and helped to review, scan, and catalog them.  The result was a stunning set of over 570 black and white photographs of Steuben pieces, including some shapes that had not previously been known to the club.

These photographs are a part of the Rakow Library Collection and are now available for digital viewing through the CMoG website (https://www.CMoG.org).  You can find them by navigating to the Rakow Research Library tab and conducting a search for “Carder Steuben glassware photographs.”  A direct link to the photographs is here.  There are many other rare materials that are digitally available, and almost all Special Collections materials can be viewed in person by appointment at the library.  Enjoy!