Connect

UVA Health Claude Moore Health Sciences Library is making a milestone! It held an open house Sept. 3 to welcome the new academic year and kick off a celebration of 50 years of serving the health system, University of Virginia, UVA School of Medicine, UVA School of Nursing, and affiliates. 

Visitors met the 22-member library team; learned more about resources, services, events, classes, and UVA Health groups and departments; viewed an exhibit curated by Historical Collections and Services team members that highlights the longer history of the library’s collections and early medical education at UVA; enjoyed pizza, cakes, candy, and swag; and participated in a scavenger hunt and earned prizes!

Library team members also showcased the many ways they and affiliated groups support academic and professional growth.

‘Honoring Our Past While Embracing the Future’ 

“For 50 years, the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library has been more than a building — it’s been a partner in education, research, patient care, and community outreach,” says Bart Ragon EdD, MLIS, Director, Claude Moore Health Sciences Library (pictured below). “As we celebrate this milestone, we’re honoring our past while embracing the future. Today, the library is aligned fully with UVA Health’s One Future Together|Health and Hope for All strategic plan — driving innovation from open science to artificial intelligence.”

He adds: “What makes the library unique, though, isn’t its walls or collections, it’s our people. Our team is passionate when it comes to serving students, clinicians, faculty, and team members — helping them learn, discover, and transform health for the communities we serve.” 

Turning Back Time

The library’s collections date back to the University’s beginnings. Thomas Jefferson selected 710 medical texts to support the School of Anatomy and Medicine under the direction of Robley Dunglison, MD. These volumes were housed in the Rotunda, and others were added over the years. While it was once assumed the entire medical collection was lost in the Rotunda fire of 1895, recent discoveries indicate that some volumes survived. These texts form part of the library’s “vaulted collection” of rare medical books. A small selection is currently on display in the library’s lobby as part of its commemoration.  

Before the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library opened in 1975, there was a “medical library” in the old Medical School Building starting in 1929. This earlier library was smaller and primarily provided study spaces and medical journals, and the collection was still a part of the University Library’s catalog.

In 1962, plans began for what would become the current Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, led by its first director Wilhelm Moll, MD. His grand vision was to unite the medical collections in one building and incorporate the UVA School of Nursing library. The building was completed in August 1975 and dedicated on April 9, 1976, named for donor and UVA School of Medicine alumnus, Claude Moore. In the spring of 2026, there’ll be more recognition of this milestone. Check out more history. 

By the Numbers

Did you know the 72,000 sq. ft. Claude Moore Health Sciences Library:

• Is open 24/7 to UVA Health affiliates and 45 hours a week to non-UVA Health affiliates.
• Serves 8,348 primary users, licenses more than 3,890 journal titles in the basic and clinical sciences, and provides access to 112,329+ electronic and print books.
• Houses a large collection of databases including OVID Medline, ScienceDirect, AccessMedicine, Web of Science, UpToDate, and ClinicalKey. For interdisciplinary research, UVA Health affiliates can access the entire UVA online holdings including more than 3 million eBooks, 466,000 journals, and 1,200 databases.
• Offers Historical Collections and Services — repository of special collections and archives — boasting 30,000 rare medical books and journals, 2,000 medical artifacts, 100 manuscript collections, 2,000+ historic images, oral history archive, and digitized and born-digital content.

Claude Moore Health Sciences Library also serves as a biomedical information resource for the University at large, the local community, the Commonwealth of Virginia through proactive outreach services, and the nation through cooperative programs with other libraries and agencies.

Congratulations to the team members on half a century of expanding our excellence and enabling discoveries for better health!

Read more on Connect about the library and its team:

• Libraries Empower Translational Science Hubs With Collaborative Resources and Expertise
• Hope at Work: Commitment to Service