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+1 207-780-4850
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314 Forest Ave, Portland, ME, 04101
Oakdale
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1.1 miPortland
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Specialties
As an integral part of a comprehensive metropolitan university within the University of Maine System, the Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education [OML] is committed to preserving the cartographic heritage of the state, region, and nation for future generations, and to making that heritage accessible to the University, the people of Maine, and to all other students, scholars, and visitors. It shares its collections through exhibitions and through collaborative efforts with other cultural institutions. It seeks to interpret its collections ~ to make them intellectually accessible ~ through classes, exhibitions, and other outreach programs.
History
Established in 1986.
Eleanor Houston Smith donated the Smith Collection of maps, atlases, and globes to the University of Southern Maine in 1986, in memory of her late husband Lawrence M. C. Smith. The collection was physically transferred to USM in 1988. It was housed temporarily in the Gorham campus library while plans were prepared to construct an addition to the library in Bailey Hall.
Prompted by the example of the Smith donation, Dr. Harold L. Osher and his wife, Peggy L. Osher, together donated their collection to USM in 1989. The two gifts together constitute the founding collections, complementing each other with surprisingly little overlap. Moreover, the Oshers donated additional resources and advocated the creation of the special map library that bears their name.
