WEST LIBERTY, W.Va., Nov. 23, 2015 — West Liberty University unveiled the Jay T. McCamic, Esq. and Dr. Eileen W. MacFarlane Collection of Etchings recently at a private reception, held in the University Archives at the Paul Elbin Library.
Donated by Wheeling lawyers Jeremy C. McCamic Esq. and Jolyon W. McCamic Esq., the etchings represent a lifelong passion for historical art by their father Jay T. McCamic.
“We are grateful for this important gift and are pleased to share them with our students and the public,” said Interim President John P. McCullough.
“We are proud and pleased to announce that the WLU Archives are no longer a dream that lives in a closet, but is now legitimized by this generous donation,” added Vice President of Institutional Advancement Jason Koegler. “It’s public-private partnerships like these that are the key to this region’s growth and development and we are grateful for the support of Jeremy and Jolyon McCamic.”
Jay T. McCamic served in the military during World War I, where he met and married an English girl, Joan Whitehead. An attorney as well as an artist, McCamic brought the collection of etching to this country from London in 1928. He was assisted in his effort by his sister-in-law, Dr. Eileen W. MacFarlane.
Jeremy and Jolyon McCamic inherited the etchings at the time of their father’s death in 1971. Numbering 1,447 historic pictures, the collection date to the 18th and 19th centuries and are images of historic events, religious themes, European views, nobility and beautiful ladies. All are etchings or engravings that use the technique of creating prints made from a metal plate, usually copper. The plate itself is incised with acid to create the design that is then inked and applied to paper to create a print.
The McCamic gift also helped make the archives more of a reality at the University, since it paid for shelving and other improvements.
“We relocated our archival items to a specific area. Prior to this, WLU never really had an archive. Bob Schramm (former professor, now deceased) helped to save all kinds of historical items, including his photographs. The McCamic gift has allowed us to take advantage of a space in the Elbin Library and add archival shelving and other amenities to create a real archives,” explained Library Director Cheryl Harshman. “There is a room for researchers, alumni and the public to come and do research about the university and those who have lived and worked here in the past.”
The archives also include a workroom for staff to handle and preserve, store and catalog artifacts. Plus, the etching collection also is digitalized for Internet viewing at Flickr.
The donation continues the generosity of the McCamic family that began with the gift of the Jay T. McCamic Art Book Collection in 1971, and carries on with his grandsons, Jay McCamic, Esq., son of Jeremy and Jeffrey McCamic, Esq., the son of Jolyon.
The University Archives at Elbin Library are located on the lower level of the Paul N. Elbin Library. For more information or to visit, please contact the help desk at 304-336-8261 or visit westliberty.edu/library.