Denison Library’s Special Collections are extensive and varied, ranging from classical literature to Californiana. They include the Scripps College Archives, which provide a significant record for the study of the college since its inception in 1926 and for the history of women’s education in general.

Mount Saint Mary's University was founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet in 1925 as the first Catholic women's college west of the Mississippi. It comprises two historic sites, the Chalon Campus high above Brentwood (1930), and the Doheny Campus, which occupies the former estate of Edward and Estelle Doheny, including the Doheny Mansion at 8 Chester Place (1899).