New York University’s Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives formally announced that it will acquire the papers of the Communist Party USA. Library Director Michael Nash termed the acquisition “one of the most exciting collecting opportunities that has ever presented itself here.” The collection is contained in 438 boxes and covers materials dating back to the party’s inception in 1919.

Many of the CPUSA’s early papers have been available in the Library of Congress since 2000 when records held in Soviet files were made available for microfilming.

The Tamiment Library’s description of the acquisition is available here. Information for this article was drawn in part from the New York Times.

This post first appeared on AHA Today.