The McCain Collection for Western Life contains books, journals, microforms, and other media, documenting the Western United States, especially its history, literature, anthropology, geography, politics, economics, and cultural life. The emphasis is on the West beyond the 100th meridian, although the frontier experience across the United States, as well as the Native American tribes in all parts of the country, are also included. The McCain Collection was established in 1993 to augment the library’s holdings on the Western United States and was made possible through a generous endowment provided by Warren E. and Bernie McCain, supplemented by an additional one million dollar challenge grant, which was successfully matched by the contributions of hundreds of individual donors, including many on the Library staff. Warren McCain grew up in Payette, Idaho, went to work for the Albertsons, Inc., in 1959, and served as the firm’s chief executive officer from 1976 until 1991. Much of the McCain Collection is housed in the McCain Room on the second floor, though material purchased with McCain endowment funds can be found in all departments of the library. A distinctive bookplate identifies materials that are purchased from the McCain endowment.
Titles in the McCain collection are listed in the Library's catalog. Most McCain titles may be checked out; the primary exceptions being Reference books, microforms, and books in Special Collections.
The Horatio Alger Association honored Warren McCain in 1991. Their profile of Mr. McCain can be found on their website.