Playing what Dean of Libraries Nick Burckel said is the role of "society's memory," Marquette libraries are being recognized today for having a year to remember.

The Wisconsin Historical Records Advisory Board and the Wisconsin Historical Society will present this year's Governor's Archival Achievement Award to University President the Rev. Robert A. Wild. The ceremony will be held in the John P. Raynor, S.J., Library's Prucha Archives Reading Room at 4 p.m. today.

Historical Society representatives could not be reached in time to comment on the award.

The award recognizes the libraries' success in archiving and sharing special collections, according to Burckel.

Burckel said the libraries applied for the award in March 2005, the first time Marquette had applied.

He cited the libraries' work to make materials available in electronic form, and their use of collections on Catholic mission work with American Indians, Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement and J.R.R. Tolkien's original "Lord of the Rings" manuscripts in special programs among the highlights of the libraries' archival success over the last few years.

Burckel said the libraries have focused specifically on acquiring collections on American Indian mission work and the Catholic Worker movement, an approach which has allowed the libraries to make good use of the special collections.

Last October, for instance, the libraries held a conference to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first publication of Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" novels, Burckel said.

He said similar events were held using the American Indian collections in 2000 and the Dorothy Day collections in 2001.

Matt Blessing, head of special collections and university archives, said the "Lord of the Rings" conference attracted more than 300 guests from six different countries, including several top Tolkien authorities who presented original research.

"It was a way to highlight Marquette's preservation of Tolkien's manuscripts," he said.

The research presented at the conference will be published by Marquette Press early next year, Blessing said.

College of Arts & Sciences junior Caitlin Madden, a longtime Tolkien fan, said she went to see the Tolkien manuscripts in her first week at Marquette.

"I think it's interesting that those sort of things are just floating around," he said.

Marquette purchased the manuscripts directly from Tolkien around the time the novels were first published, and thousands of additional pages were later donated by Tolkien's son, according to Blessing.

Blessing said Marquette's libraries have also had the opportunity the display unique collections, such as a 120-foot scroll on which Jack Kerouac drafted his novel "On the Road."

When the scroll went on tour last year, Marquette appliedfor and was granted permission to display it, Burckel said.

He said the library unrolled a potion of the scroll each week in conjuction with readings from "On the Road" and music, a program designed "to recreate a sense of the beat generation of the '50s."

"That's not something you'd normally get a chance to see, certainly not in Milwaukee," he said.

Burckel said preserving and sharing archives is at the heart of the role of libraries.

"We're really guardians for society," he said.