A collection of furnishings, rare books, photographs, scrapbooks, and other items that once belonged to Stetson alumnus Judge Bert Fish. One of the five men who comprised Stetson's first graduating law school class in 1902, Bert Fish went on to become a prominent Volusia County judge and, later, a United States diplomat. His career with the State Department took him first to Egypt in 1934, and then to Saudi Arabia and Portugal.
The bulk of this collection was formerly exhibited at the DeLand Memorial Hospital Museum as "The Bert Fish Room." It includes primarily items believed to have furnished Fish's personal office in Cairo. The duPont-Ball Library acquired the collection as a gift arranged by the Museum and the Bert Fish Foundation. It has expanded an earlier collection of rare books on Egyptology that Bert Fish bequeathed to Stetson University. Highlights include the elaborately carved chairs and bureau from Fish's office, as well as a first edition imprint of Napoleon's Description of Egypt.
Ask to see our Bert Fish display area in the duPont-Ball Library. A Finding Aid for the Bert Fish Collection is available on the Archives and Special Collections LibGuide, accessible through the duPont-Ball Library's website.
