When the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) donated its library to the University of Mississippi in 2001, it was an opportune time for digitizing. Royce Kurtz, accounting reference librarian and associate professor, has created digital copies of more than 7,000 titles totaling a quarter of a million pages. These titles document the evolution of accounting and auditing standards from the late 1800s to the 21st century.
“These digital records detail highly contentious debates over regulations that helped shaped the modern American economy,” Kurtz said. “They are used by professionals and researchers here at the university and around the world.”
The ongoing digital accounting project includes scanning the AICPA’s old ledger books, public hearings and congressional lobbying efforts. In addition, Kurtz has digitized thousands of pages of other accounting material, including Deloitte Touche historical items, early 20th-century pamphlets, and the Accounting Historians Journal and Accounting Historians Notebook.