The Stefansson Collection on Polar Exploration maintains an international reputation as one of the finest historical collections on polar exploration and is used by scholars and students throughout the world. It was created and developed by Vilhjalmur Stefansson as his personal library from roughly 1925 through 1951. At that time, it was transferred to Dartmouth College, primarily to support the Northern Studies Program at the College. The collection was purchased by the College in 1952 and has been a part of the Special Collections since that time.
The collection supports instruction and research in history, geography, environmental studies, earth sciences, anthropology, biology and Native American studies. The collection is also used by the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratories in Hanover, New Hampshire, and the Center for Northern Studies in Wolcott, Vermont.