The University of Alabama (UA) maintains 40 different, important teaching and research collections, totaling over 750,000 lots and 12,363,000 items. Natural history collections at UA were formally maintained in at least five separate facilities, including those of the Departments of Anthropology, Biological Sciences, and Geology, and the Alabama Museum of Natural History, and Geological Survey of Alabama (GSA). Specimen holdings for the invertebrate, paleontological, ichthyological, and botanical collections have been developed independently at various times by both UA and GSA personnel in response to individual research needs or ongoing studies at these organizations; some of these collections remain independent.

Until recently, UA did not have a centralized scientific collections facility for oversight and maintenance of the valuable research and teaching collections in natural history. In January 1991, The University of Alabama committed to provide financial support for a 128,000 sq. ft. Scientific Collections Facility (SCF) to centralize all collections and associated research facilities and submitted a formal request to the State of Alabama Building Commission to employ the architectural firm to assist in the facility's development. Between May and October, 1991, an appointed Advisory Committee and UA architects and planners worked closely with architects in developing the design and plans for construction of the facility. Construction on the new 4 story facility began in March 1992. The first stage of development included only the first and second floors of the building containing the GSA core collection and UA Library special collections; these floors were completed in 1994. The third and fourth floors containing natural history collections and a center for biodiversity and systematics were not completed until 1996.

The University of Alabama Scientific Collections Facility was completed in March 1997 and represents a premier storage, teaching, and research center for the vast majority of the collections at the University of Alabama. The Scientific Collections Facility was dedicated formally in 2001 and renamed Mary Harmon Bryant Hall (MHBH). MHBH is located on Hackberry Lane (see map, building no. 140), adjacent to the Museum of Natural History (no. 142) and the Alabama Geological Survey (no. 143), and behind the Department of Chemistry (no. 139). Following from the architectural theme of most of the campus, the new building has an external design of a Georgian style. The building has four floors and is a heavy-duty structure with a brick veneer and will accommodate "high density" storage, with a rating of 300 lb live load. This is over two times the rating for a conventional structure.

The completion of some aspects of MHBH was supported by grants to Drs. Mayden and Haynes from the National Science Foundation through Biological Research and Resources, specificially through Collections Resources. Their new collection complexes and the Steven Johnson Molecular Systematics Laboratory occupy most of the fourth floor of the building (see floor plan). The fourth floor also includes photographic collections, bulk storage for the Museum, and a darkroom. Other web pages at this site describe the Ichthyological, Botanical, and Herpetological complexes, and Molecular Systematics Laboratory in greater detail. The third floor contains collections related to paleontology, Mammalogy, Ornithology, Marine Invertebrates, Entomology, Rocks and Minerals, Clothing and Textiles, and Material Culture (History). All of our complexes are equipped with a heat activated sprinkler fire protection system, controlled temperatures, and the necessary utilities and lighting for a modern collection/research facility.