Rare Books and Manuscripts

Jim Irsay's passion for American history extends to the literary world. Explore the Collection's rare books and manuscripts.

Collection Highlights

The Catcher in the Rye

J. D. Salinger

1951

Original Typescript Scroll of "On the Road"

Jack Kerouac

1951

Jim Morrison's "Paris Journal"

Jim Morrison

1971

Original Working Manuscript of Alcoholics Anonymous

Bill Wilson

1939

Smells like team spirit: Billionaire Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay shares his collection of rare guitars at a free exhibition after splurging $4.4 million on Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain's Fender Mustang READ ARTICLE

"To call Irsay’s collection breathtaking would not do it justice. Items on display ran the gamut from historical artifacts — such as letters from George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, the wanted poster for John Wilkes Booth and the Atlantic Charter signed by Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt — to pop culture items such as Hunter S. Thompson’s “Red Shark” 1973 Chevrolet Caprice convertible."

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