Science fiction libraries and museums

With the growth of science fiction studies as an academic discipline as well as a popular media genre, a number of libraries, museums, archives, and special collections have been established to collect and organize works of scholarly and historical value in the field.

Key collections

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The Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Speculation is a leading collection of science fiction. It was founded in Toronto in 1970 by Judith Merril. This public library collection contains over 63,000 items, including books, magazines, audiovisual works, original manuscripts, and other items of interest to both casual users and academic researchers.[1]

Paul Allen and Jody Patton founded the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame in 2004, located at the base of Space Needle in Seattle. Prominent authors such as Greg Bear serve as advisers to the museum.

An important museum of the genre is Maison d’Ailleurs ("House of Elsewhere") in Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland, housing a large collection of literature relating to science fiction, utopias, and extraordinary journeys. It was founded by the French encyclopedist Pierre Versins in 1976 and now owns over 70,000 books, as well as many other items (60,000) related to science fiction and its imagery.

List of archives, libraries, museums, and collections

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Research collections

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Popular culture collections with strong SF

Museums

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Important databases and portals

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References

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  1. ^ "The Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy". Toronto Public Library. 2006-07-16. Archived from the original on 2006-12-11. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  2. ^ Sara Lin, "In a university not far away, sci-fi heaven", Los Angeles Times, June 21, 2007.
  3. ^ "Help Build The Museum of Science Fiction in Washington, D.C.!". Tor.com. 2013-11-05. Retrieved 2014-07-30.
  4. ^ Snider, Mike (November 4, 2013). "Funds sought for science fiction museum lift-off". Usatoday.com. Retrieved 2014-07-30.