Ernest Miller White Library

NOTE: While there have been no confirmed cases of the COVID-19 (“coronavirus”) respiratory disease on Louisville Seminary’s campus, out of an abundance of care and caution, the Louisville Seminary E.M. White Library will be closed from March 17 until further notice. We regret any inconvenience and thank you for your support and understanding. Contact us at library@lpts.edu if you need help with any library matters.

New in the Library

Library Services

My Account

Sign in here to your account in Morgan Discovery. For your first sign in, use the set/reset password link to create a password. Input your username and newly created password to access information about your account. (Your username is the 13 digit barcode on your LPTS ID.) If you have problems accessing your account please contact the circulation desk. Phone: 502-992-9398 or e-mail circdesk@lpts.edu.

InterLibrary Loan (ILL)

Resources not available in the library’s collection may be requested from another library through interlibrary loan. Online request forms are accessible through the library catalog (Morgan) or use the link below. A maximum of five titles per day may be requested. This service is limited to Louisville Seminary students and employees. You should allow one to three weeks for your requested items to arrive.
Click here to fill out the request form.

Guides

Learn everything about the Ernest Miller White Library.
DMin Format Guide June 2018
Thesis Formatting
All Standard Ordination Exams

Copy, Print, Scan

Copying - The library has a copy machine located in the main hallway. Copies are 5 cents each.

Printing - Documents sent from computers in the library's computer lab will be sent to the printer in the lobby area. The cost of printing is calculated by software on the computer, go to the circulation desk, pay that amount, and your printing will be sent to the printer for pick up. For color printing or double-sided printing, ask at the Circulation Desk.

Scanning - The copy machine can also scan documents to a .pdf format which can be e-mailed. The BookEye Scanner can save data to a flash drive or send data to your email.

Reserves

Items listed as "on reserve" in class syllabi will generally be available from the reserve section of the circulation desk at the library. Items listed as "on CAMS" are available online. Please have the name of the professor teaching the class and the title of the item that you need.

To borrow materials on reserve you must have a valid Louisville Seminary ID or library card. Any reserved material borrowed must be checked out to your account, even if you are only using it to make a photocopy.

“Closed” reserves are those that can be used only in the library. Only one closed reserve book may be borrowed at any one time unless special permission is granted by a member of the circulation staff.

“Open” reserves are those that can also be checked out two hours before closing and returned the following day within the first hour of opening. Any reasonable number of open reserve books may be borrowed at one time. Circulation staff will determine what is “reasonable” based on perception of the needs of other patrons.

Reserved materials will not be recalled during the first two-hour loan period, but they may be recalled during a second two-hour loan period if they have been renewed.

Special Collections

The Brainard Lemon Ancient Pottery Collection

The Seminary is fortunate to own a large collection of ancient pottery. The existence of the collection of artifacts is largely due to Mr. Brainard Lemon. Lemon was on the board of directors of the seminary (1923-1929) and president and owner of the Louisville jewelry firm, Lemon and Son, Inc. In 1929 Lemon purchased over 288 artifacts, largely Palestinian pottery, specifically for the Seminary. The collection has grown since Lemon’s gift and now contains over 350 pieces.

A history of the collection was written by Dr. A.B. Rhodes in 1975. Dr. Rhodes served as the collection's curator during his tenure on the faculty of the Seminary.

The Lower Level of the library has a display area of five standing cases that are filled with part of that overall collection. Case 1 contains items that date from the time of Canaan to more than ten centuries later. It even includes a fake antiquity (1.12) that is made from fragments of authentic antique pottery.

Case 2 shows many examples of the pottery used ca. 1750 B.C. for cooking and for storing water.

Case 3 centers on items that date from 1400 B.C. and includes a jug with a rare “chocolate-on-white” design (3.4).

Most of the artifacts in case 4 are from ca.1200 B.C. Note the so called “beer jug” on the first shelf (4.3) whose strainer kept the grain husks out of one’s beer. Also note the design of the pilgrim flask at 4.4 which looks like a human face.

Most of the items in case 5 date from 800 B.C. and include several charming pottery figurines of animals (5.5) and an Egyptian jar.

The pottery collection is available for viewing when the library is open.

View more images of pieces in the collection .

Sharp Art Collection

Search an online gallery of the artwork in this collection.

Seminary Archives

The Seminary archives is housed in the Library and is made up of materials related to the history of the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Access to these materials is restricted. Inquiries about the collection should be directed to amorris@lpts.edu who oversees this archive.

This group of students, pictured above, who entered Louisville Seminary in the Fall of 1963, were the first to attend classes on the new Alta Vista Road campus. Set on 38 acres in the heart of Cherokee Park, it was a dramatic change from the previous location at 109 East Broadway in the heart of downtown Louisville.

Click here for an archive of class photos.
Click here for information about the Grafton Trophy

Rare Books Collection

Certain rare, embrittled, or otherwise unique materials are housed in a closed climate-controlled environment in the library. These titles are included in the online catalog and are available for your use. Because many of these items are fragile or difficult to replace, the following rules govern their use:

1. To consult an item from the Special Collection, you must submit a written request at the Circulation Desk at least two business days in advance, indicating (a) the reason for the request and (b) the date on which you want to use the item. Forms for this purpose are available at the desk.
2. The use of any item from the Special Collection must be approved by the Head of Public Services, the Head of Technical Services, or the Library Director. If your request is approved, a librarian will retrieve the item for you.
3. Items from the Special Collection may be used only in the Reference Room.
4. Any special instructions of the librarian, such as the use of linen gloves in some cases, must be followed, or permission to use the material may be withdrawn.
5. Photocopying material from the Special Collection must be approved and performed by a librarian. Some items may be too fragile for photocopying.

About the Library

The steadily growing collections of the Ernest Miller White Library include more than 175,000 bound volumes, almost 12,000 microforms, and around 7,000 audio-visual resources. The library also subscribes to over 530 current periodicals and provides access to a large and increasing number of electronic resources. One of the library’s most valuable resources is its talented and service-oriented staff, whose mission is not only to collect and organize this wealth of information but also to help students and others learn how to search intelligently and strategically for the information they need, evaluate that information critically, and use it effectively and ethically.

The wide range of resources available at the library is easily accessed using the online catalog, "Morgan." The online catalog can be accessed by computers in the library or through the Internet.

In addition to “Morgan,” the library provides access to major electronic tools for research in theology and related subjects, including the ATLA Religion Database, the Family and Society Studies Worldwide Database, Old Testament Abstracts, New Testament Abstracts, the Digital Library of Classic Protestant Texts, the works of John Calvin on CD-ROM, the Digital Karl Barth Library, and BibleWorks. Access to many other databases is available through the Internet.

The library participates actively in cooperative programs with other libraries on local, state, and regional levels so that patrons can use an even wider range of resources. Locally, the Kentuckiana Metroversity consortium gives LPTS students and faculty privileges to borrow from more than four million volumes, housed at ten academic libraries in the Louisville area. Statewide, the Kentucky Virtual Library (KYVL) gives students access to many more electronic databases. Regionally, the Theological Education Association of Mid-America (TEAM-A) provides our students and faculty library privileges at four other regional seminaries.

Use of this extensive range of resources is supported by the library’s instructional programs. These programs enhance the research and study of our students by educating them further about tools that can meet their information needs in seminary and in ministry. Course-related instruction, instruction in the use of information technology, and database training are designed to help students become increasingly confident and competent managers of information in our technological age.

Mission

1.1 The Library seeks to support the mission of Louisville Seminary by providing its students, faculty, and other employees with:
1.1.1 integrated access to library resources and information technologies that facilitate their activities of teaching, learning, research, and administration and
1.1.2 instruction that enhances their ability to find, evaluate, and use information relevant to their vocational commitments with effectiveness and integrity.
1.2 Within the scope of this support for the mission of Louisville Seminary, the department also seeks to offer resources and instruction to Seminary alums, members of area faith communities, and the local public in support of their study of subjects related to Christian faith and practice.

Principal Objectives
2.1 Identify, acquire, organize, and disseminate all forms of recorded information (print, microform, electronic, and audio-visual) that support the current research, instructional, and administrative programs of the Seminary.
2.2 Acquire also a range of materials representing perspectives and subject matter broader than those represented in the present curriculum and current faculty and student research in order to facilitate study beyond those confines and familiarize patrons with changing patterns of Christian reflection.
2.3 Provide electronic and print search tools for identifying resources relevant to the research, teaching, and learning of library patrons.
2.4 Provide timely access to, and easy retrieval of, library resources through expeditious cataloging and through circulation policies that facilitate shared use of those resources.
2.5 Provide access to, and facilitate the use of, information resources available beyond the campus.
2.6 Instruct faculty and students in the integrated use of information technology, search tools, and traditional print, microform, and audio-visual resources for teaching, learning, and research in both academic study and the practice of ministry.
2.7 Offer assistance in locating resources relevant to the research and study needs of library patrons.
2.8 Maintain an environment in the library that is conducive to individual study and reflection as well as to collaborative learning.

Consortia

Louisville Seminary students and employees may use reference services and borrow books from any library in the Kentuckiana Metroversity System by presenting an LPTS ID card. All Metroversity libraries are located in the Louisville metropolitan area. Printed information about the locations and hours of operation of these libraries is available at the Circulation Desk. You can also get additional information about Metroversity schools and their libraries on the Internet at http://metroversity.org/ . Here is a list of the institutions with their addresses:

• Bellarmine University, 2000 Norris Place, Louisville, KY 40205
• Indiana University Southeast, 4201 Grantline Road, New Albany, IN 47150
• Jefferson Community and Technical College, 109 E. Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202
• Jefferson Community and Technical College Southwest, 1000 Community College Drive, Louisville, KY 40272
• Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2825 Lexington Road, Louisville, KY 40280
• Spalding University, 851 S. Fourth Street, Louisville, KY 40202
• University of Louisville, 2301 S. Third Street, Louisville, KY 40208

The facilities and collections of the Louisville Free Public Library are also available to Louisville Seminary students and employees. More information about the public library system in Louisville can be found at http://www.lfpl.org .

Books borrowed from any Metroversity library or from the Louisville Free Public Library may be returned to the Circulation Desk at the Seminary library for return to the lending library by courier.

TEAM-A

Theological Education Association of Mid-America (TEAM-A)
Louisville Seminary students and employees may also borrow books from libraries in the TEAM-A consortium. Member institutions with their addresses are:

• Asbury Theological Seminary, 204 North Lexington Avenue, Wilmore, KY 40390
• Lexington Theological Seminary, South Limestone Street, Lexington, KY 40506
• St. Meinrad School of Theology, 100 Hill Drive, St. Meinrad, IN 47577
• Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2825 Lexington Road, Louisville, KY 40280

Additional information about TEAM-A libraries can be found at http://www.eteama.org .