The Gerald and Sue Friedman Manuscript collection (MC 72) is part of a larger History of Geology Collection compiled by the Friedmans over many years. It contains nearly 300 manuscript items documenting the development of the science of geology. Materials in the collection range from early icons of the history of geology such as William Smith’s A Delineation of the Strata of England and Wales—the “map that changed the world” and James Hutton’s Abstract of a Dissertation Read in the Royal Society of Edinburgh to rare student manuals and early U.S. state geology surveys. Dr. and Mrs. Friedman assembled over many years a collection of manuscript material to complement their library on the history of geology and related sciences. They formed relationships with dealers, primarily two British document specialists, so that they might be offered the broadest range of material. Though their intention was to acquire letters with content that would add dimension to the published works in their book collection, they occasionally purchased “clipped” signatures and other items of a purely autograph-collecting nature for use when displaying their book collection. They also acquired some items that are purely ancillary to the collection, for example, a snippet of a reused ledger in George Washington’s handwriting. However, the main strength of the collection is that many of the letters add to an understanding of the scientific work that the authors were engaged in – the lectures they were giving; the material they borrowed; the publications they worked on; and the controversies they were involved in. There is a strong sense of intellectual community – particularly since the Friedmans were able to collect some groups of letters that show the range of an individual’s correspondence. The letters of William Buckland, Thomas Henry Huxley, Lord Kelvin, Roderick Impey Murchison, Richard Owen, John Phillips, Adam Sedgwick, and Alexander Von Humboldt – all provide breadth of communication. Even the letters which mention nothing specifically about science reveal a strong social network within the scientific community. Single items of note include Alexander Cuming’s 1739 petition for relief of debt to William Yonge; Erasmus Darwin’s 1771 account book; Sidney Godolphin’s 1689 document regarding aid to the county of Westmoreland; Sydney S. Lyon’s letter of 1877 to James Hall included with his Remarks on the Stratigraphical Arrangement of Rocks in Kentucky; William Vans Murray’s 1800 news of the convention signed with France; and Archibald Campbell’s 1844 near east travel journal.