Bibliographical Society of America Fellowships

The Bibliographical Society of America offers a number of fellowships to promote inquiry and research in books and other textual artifacts in both traditional and emerging formats.

Bibliographical projects may range chronologically from the study of clay tablets and papyrus rolls to contemporary literary texts and born-digital materials. Topics relating to books and manuscripts in any field and of any period are eligible for consideration as long as they include analysis of the physical object – that is, the handwritten, printed, or other textual artifact – as historical evidence.

Projects may include establishing a text or studying the history of book or manuscript production, publication, distribution, collecting, or reading, and the history of bibliographical study itself. Fellowship awards may be used to fund travel to collections and other expenses associated with research, publication, or other scholarly outcomes related to the topic for which the award was made.

Applicants must be active members of the Society to be considered for a fellowship award.

fellowships

• BSA Short-term Fellowships ($3,000) support bibliographical research that focuses on the physical aspects of textual artifacts as historical evidence. Such artifacts, both tangible and digital, in any field and of any period are eligible for consideration.
• The Fredson Bowers Award ($1,500) is funded jointly with the Bibliographical Society of the UK where it is a Major Grant.  Applicants must apply through the Bibliographical Society (UK).
• The Katharine F. Pantzer Senior Fellowship in the British Book Trades ($6,000) supports research by a senior scholar engaged in bibliographical inquiry into the history of the book trades and publishing history in Britain during the hand-press period, as well as studies of authorship, reading, and collecting based on the examination of British books published in that period, with a special emphasis on descriptive bibliography.
• The Katharine Pantzer Junior Fellowship in the British Book Trades ($3,000) supports bibliographical inquiry into the history of the book trades and publishing history in Britain during the hand-press period, as well as studies of authorship, reading, and collecting based on the examination of British books published in that period, with special emphasis on descriptive bibliography.
• The Charles J. Tanenbaum Fellowship in Cartographical Bibliography ($3,000) supports projects dealing with all aspects of the history, presentation, printing, design, distribution, and reception of cartographical documents from Renaissance times to the present, with a special emphasis on eighteenth-century cartography.
• The BSA-Pine Tree Foundation Fellowship in Culinary Bibliography ($3,000) supports the bibliographical study of printed and manuscript cookbooks (once commonly known as receipt books); medical recipe books that also contain culinary recipes; other types of books, manuscript, and printed material that include a substantial body of culinary recipes; treatises on and studies of gastronomy; or memoirs, diary accounts, or descriptions of food and cooking.
• The BSA-Harry Ransom Center Pforzheimer Fellowship in Bibliography (two awards, $3,000 each) supports the bibliographical study of medieval and early modern books and manuscripts held in the Ransom Center’s Pforzheimer Library and its other wide-ranging collections.
• The BSA-ASECS Fellowship for Bibliographical Studies in the Eighteenth Century ($3,000).  Recipients must be members of the American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies at the time of the award.
• The BSA-Pine Tree Foundation Fellowship in Hispanic Bibliography ($3,000) supports the bibliographical study of printed and manuscript items or the bibliographical study of book and manuscript collections in the Spanish language in any period or country, or in any language but produced or located in Spain or its overseas dominions during the time of Spanish sovereignty. 
• The BSA-St. Louis Mercantile Library Fellowship ($3,000) supports research in North American bibliography, including studies in the North American book trade, production and distribution of North American books, North American book illustration and design, North American collecting and connoisseurship, and North American bibliographical history in general.
• The Reese Fellowship for American Bibliography and the History of the Book in the Americas ($3,000) may be awarded to any scholar, whether academic or independent, whose project explores the history of print culture in the Western Hemisphere.
• The Dorothy Porter Wesley Fellowship ($3,000) supports bibliographical study conducted by a Black individual. Building on the Society’s commitment to expanding the representation of scholars of all backgrounds and identities, this short-term fellowship may be used to pursue bibliographical research in any field and of any period.
• The BSA Peck-Stacpoole Fellowship for Early Career Collections Professionals (2 awards, $3,000 each) supports bibliographical research by conservators, curators, librarians, and others who are responsible for institutional collections of textual artifacts, at early stages of their careers.
• The Caxton Club Fellowship for Midwestern Bibliographers ($3,000 and a one-year membership in both the Caxton Club and the BSA) supports bibliographical research that focuses on the physical aspects of books or manuscripts as historical evidence.
• The BSA-Rare Book School Fellowship funds tuition for one first-year attendee each year at any course offered by Rare Book School at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville or another location, with an additional grant for travel or housing expenses.