Access to Collections

The Archives serves a public institution and its holdings are open to all. The use of certain manuscripts and public records is restricted by statute or donors. For the protection of its collections, the Archives also reserves the right to restrict use of unprocessed records and fragile materials.

Most of the collection is cataloged in Madcat, the University's online catalog, and a much smaller percentage in Archival Resources in Wisconsin: Descriptive Finding Aids. Most of our detailed finding aids are not available online and must be consulted in the University Archives.

The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with laws of libel, privacy, and copyright which may be involved in the use of manuscripts and other material.

Circulation Policy

Materials from the University Archives collection do not circulate; they must be used in the Archives Reading Room. Materials may not be removed from the University Archives for copying.

The University Archives is a member of the Wisconsin Historical Society Area Research Center Network and some items from our collection may circulate to these repositories.

If there are duplicates of publications, they may be available for Inter-Library Loan. Contact your local library for information on Inter-Library Loan.

Course Descriptions

We can photocopy course descriptions for you; there is no fee for a small number of course descriptions, but if you need a large number of them, we may charge a small fee. Outside the US the charge is $15.00 plus postage. You need to provide a photocopy of your transcript and indicate which descriptions you need. If you do not have your transcript you need to send a list with the course number, course name, and semester taken.

If you want the Office of the Registrar to send us a copy of your transcript, tell them to send us a "Campus Copy". The Archives does not have access to student transcripts.

Course descriptions from the early 1990s on are available at the Catalog and Bulletin Archive.

Current undergraduate and graduate catalogs are available on the University Communications academic catalogs site.

Timetables beginning with Spring 2006 are available in Minds@UW.

Photocopying/Scanning Policy

Photocopying is self service. Bound volumes, oversized sheets,and fragile items may NOT be photocopied. Digital cameras are permitted. If you would like to use a personal scanner, please check with the University Archives staff.

The Univesity Archives has a scanning microfilm/microfiche reader for making copies of those formats.

Reference/Research Assistance

If you cannot do your research in person, we do offer a reference service. The charge for this service is $20.00 an hour. Please contact us by mail or email if you are interested in this service.