From the Archivist

On the afternoon of October 12, 1918 in northeastern Minnesota, several forest fires killed over 450 people and decimated 2,000 square miles of forests, homesteads, and townships. The University of Minnesota Forest Experiment Station, known today as the Cloquet Forestry Center, survived the fire. The Center’s archival collection contains photographs that document the aftermath of the fires in the region.

This episode features a woman who achieved many notable firsts, a political leader who used her voice to better her community, implement and sustain diplomacy, and develop her own potentiality: Eugenie Anderson, the first woman to be named a United States Ambassador. A profile of Eugenie’s personal and professional life was featured on KUOM on “Minnesota Honor Roll,” a program of The Minnesota School of the Air - a series of educational radio programs designed for school-age children to listen to in the classroom.

A preview of Calling to Question: 150 of Liberal Education at the University of Minnesota (opening March 4, 2019) is currently on display in the Katherine E. Nash Gallery. This preview is composed of two display cases within On Purpose: Portrait of the Liberal Arts. The preview compliments the style of the portrait exhibit by showcasing retrospective portraits of the College of Liberal Arts alongside the personal accounts of the people involved in these historical snapshots.

Plans for a library on the West Bank campus had been discussed and debated for years, but financial and other support for a new library finally came together in June 1965. O. Meredith Wilson Library opened to the campus community on September 23, 1968.

The West Bank we know today on the Twin Cities campus looked quite different five decades ago. Why, in the 1960s, did the University expand (or to use the preferred term at the time – stretch) to the West Bank of the Mississippi River? To answer that question, the story begins in the 1940s.

Long before TCF Bank Stadium became home to Golden Gopher football, there was Northrop Field — the first on-campus outdoor athletic facility at the University of Minnesota. The November 4, 1899 dedication event included a faculty procession, brief speeches by Minneapolis Mayor James Gray and University President Cyrus Northrop, and a football game pitting Minnesota against Northwestern University (final score: Northwestern 11 and Minnesota 5). Northrop Field remained home to Gopher football until 1924, when Memorial Stadium opened.

University High School was established at the University of Minnesota by the Board of Regents in 1908. This year is the 50th reunion of the final graduating class of the University of Minnesota's University High School.

Materials documenting a department’s, college’s, or center’s history can be found in a variety of University Archives collections, so casting a wide research net can yield interesting and usually fruitful results. Learn more about the history of the University's laboratory schools.  

The modern Bell Museum will play an indispensable part in the formal education and the enlightenment of the people of Minnesota and beyond. My first introduction to this museum was as a student. Fortuitously, the Bell continued my museum studies as an archivist. I’m excited to further my education as a member and visitor for many more years to come.

2018 marks the 90th anniversary of the University of Minnesota Archives, giving us a prime opportunity to highlight what we have and what we do. Please explore the online exhibit by diving into an entire section examining the role of academic freedom and tenure at the University or the University’s response to the massive influx of students following World War II. Or spend some time with a panel or two.

From 1938-1979, the Minnesota School of the Air brought educational programs into the classrooms of Minnesota and beyond over radio airwaves and through tape transcription. This episode takes listeners to Metropolitan Stadium to learn how to stay dry on a rainy day. 

While working with the University Archives collections to research a recent exhibit, I learned about Professor Lillian Cohen, the University of Minnesota's first female faculty member in the Department of Chemistry.

On this episode of U of M Radio on your Historic Dial take a field trip in sound to the Como Zoo in 1978 and hear a surprising story of an animal theft and why lions do not make good pets.

The 1868 Act to Re-Organize the University established the University's mission, an academic framework, and the governance and duties of University leadership. In many ways, these events of 150 years ago are the beginnings of the University of Minnesota we know today.

From its dedication as the Field House in 1928 to its remodeling and re-naming as Williams Arena in 1950 to today, "The Barn" has held a special place on campus.