University Archives:
Resource Guide to University Histories, Timelines & Bibliographies

This guide describes materials available in the University of Iowa Archives, Department of Special Collections, that pertain to aspects of the University's history. Also featured are links to history-related sites administered elsewhere in the University. RG numbers refer to the described collection's record group number. If you have questions about our holdings, please feel free to contact us.

Above: University pennant, 1909

A Bibliography of the History of the University of Iowa. Originally prepared by Earl M. Rogers as a printed guide (University of Iowa Libraries, 1997), the online resource includes additions through the current year. The bibliography lists histories and selected contemporary accounts of the University and many of its faculty, colleges, departments, and other programs, and it often suggests effective ways to begin research. Both published and unpublished works are included.

Chronology of University of Iowa History. A timeline of significant events prepared by the Office of University Relations to commemorate the University of Iowa's sesquicentennial in 1997. The chronology includes many notable 'firsts' at the University.

Papers of the Federal Writers' Project. This collection includes a series of about two dozen papers devoted to University of Iowa history, written primarily between 1936 and 1938.

Historical Papers Collection. A collection of mostly unpublished papers pertaining to a wide variety of aspects of University of Iowa history, including college and department histories, faculty biographies, academic programs, political activism and social life. The papers are arranged alphabetically by author. RG 01.01.

House Books of the Shambaugh Family Papers. Daily journals of activities at the Iowa City home of Benjamin and Bertha Shambaugh include notes about official guests of the University, 1902-1941. RG 99.0152.

Online histories and timelines of the University of Iowa.

• Center for New Music
• College of Business
• College of Dentistry
• College of Education
• College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
• College of Medicine
• College of Nursing
• College of Public Health
• Iowa Institute of Hydraulic Research
• Iowa Writers' Workshop
• School of Journalism and Mass Communication
  • Hall of Fame
• School of Music
• University Hospitals and Clinics
• University Libraries
  • Engineering Library
  • Web site history

Published histories of the University of Iowa.

Three titles are particularly noteworthy:

• Persons, Stow. The University of Iowa in the Twentieth Century: An Institutional History (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1990).
• Gerber, John C. A Pictorial History of the University of Iowa (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1988; 2005).
• Scott, John Beldon and Rodney Lehnertz. The University of Iowa Guide to Campus Architecture (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2006)

Publications. University-produced publications often include articles pertaining to some aspect of University history. Titles of over 200 such publications may be searched in the University Serials and Journals Collection (RG 01.09.02).

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