The South Carolina Poetry Archives at Furman University is a unique collection of published works, manuscripts, and ephemeral materials from over seventy authors. The collection highlights 20th and 21st century poets connected to South Carolina by birth, employment, residence, or subject matter. Begun in 2005 and housed in the Special Collections and Archives Department of the James B. Duke Library, the Poetry Archives has expanded each year. Among the most extensively collected authors are Gilbert Allen, Claire Bateman, Phebe Davidson, Kurtis Lamkin, and Ronald Moran. The Archives includes works of all South Carolina poets laureate, literary fellows selected by the South Carolina Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, Pushcart Prize winners, South Carolina Fiction Prize winners, Piccolo Spoleto Fiction prize winners, and recipients of many other significant awards.

Beyond serving as a repository for an important and ever-expanding part of Southern literature, the Archives also provides a gateway for university students. Furman professors draw on the resources made available in Special Collections to integrate South Carolina poetry into the curricula. The collection acquaints students with what lies behind the published work of a poet; the manuscripts, correspondence and ephemeral materials collected in the Archives offer a glimpse into the construction and publication of poetry, not simply the finished poem.