The Paul John Anderson Endowed Library Preservation Fund was established in 1985. Paul knew that a great university library must be committed to preserving the records of knowledge; for while knowledge and ideas may be eternal, the records of that endeavor are not. So that the future may know what we have known, libraries must preserve the past.  

As such, the estate of Paul Anderson bequeathed funds to establish an endowment that would support the preservation and restoration of ancient and rare books at Notre Dame. Paul’s widow, Anne M. Anderson, who is now also deceased, asked that the endowment be named the Paul John Anderson Endowed Library Preservation Fund. The plaque shows the tree of knowledge emanating from the center of a book, an appropriate symbol of the human endeavor and of our intimate connection with the written word.

The Anderson Preservation Fund provides for the restoration, replacement, reformatting, and care of many volumes that would otherwise have been lost. At the Hesburgh Libraries, preservation  takes place in many forms — including environmental monitoring and control, emergency preparedness and recovery, preservation training, and awareness-raising activities — and the Paul John Anderson Endowed Library Preservation Fund assists all of them. Earnings from the Anderson Endowment also help to preserve individual items or entire collections through binding, conservation treatment, mass deacidification, and reformatting.