Online Collections
There are many sources that deal with the history of the University of Wisconsin. Indeed the entire University Archives collection--26,000 cubic feet of paper material, over 2,500,000 images, nearly 1000 oral histories, films, videos, memorabilia, etc.--documents the history of the university.
There are, however, several online collections which contain some major information about the history of this great university. The listing on the left gives links to more information about these collections.
Paper Collections
Our paper collections are divided into over 40 record groups which follow the basic structure of the University. For example:
Record Group 1 - Board of Regents
Record Group 7 - College of Letters and Science
--Series 7/6 - Department of Chemistry
--Series 7/6/10 - Henry A. Schuette papers
Record Group 19 - Student Life
--Series 19/5 - Student Affairs Committees and Councils
More recent accessions are given only an accession number (e.g. 2009/014), but will be listed with other materials from the same unit. Here is a complete list of record groups
The University of Wisconsin Collection
This collection of photographs, images, and texts includes:
- The Badger Yearbook, 1885 and 1888-1977
- The University of Wisconsin: A History (4 volumes)
- Wisconsin Alumni Magazine, 1899-1990
- University of Wisconsin Alumni Directory, 1849-1919
- Wisconsin Engineer, 1896-2004
- University of Wisconsin Archive Images
- William J. Meuer Photoart album
and much more!
Bascom Hill, c. 1910
History of 20th Century Protests & Social Action at UW-Madison
The student body of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has a rich and diverse history of activism and protest. This site does not claim to be all-inclusive, but instead attempts to provide a representative selection and timeline of student protest on campus throughout the twentieth century.
Anti Dow Protest at Commerce Building, October 18, 1967
The UW Board of Regents Collection
This collection consists of the digitized minutes of the meetings of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents from 1921-1991. The 70-year scope of this collection captures the expansion of the University of Wisconsin from one four-year campus in Madison with 7,344 students to a statewide system of 26 campuses annually serving more than 173,000 students and over one million Wisconsin residents through statewide Extension. Board of Regents agendas and minutes after 1991 are available on the Board of Regents web site.
Board of Regents, 1924
The Aldo Leopold Collection
With funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission and the Aldo Leopold Foundation, this collection is digitizing the entire Leopold Collection in the University Archives.
Aldo Leopold at his desk, 1942
Featured Images from the Archives
Help identify the moments and personalities that have shaped the history of UW-Madison.
This collection currently has images from the School of Library and Information Studies, the School of Veterinary Medicine, the College of Engineering, the Dance Program, the Class of 1957, and UW Hockey and Basketball.
School of Veterinary Medicine horses, 1984
1940-41 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Team
After a slow start to the season, the 1940-41 UW men's basketball team dominated the Big Ten conference and went on to become UW's first—and so far only—national champions.
Look at images and read more about these Badger history-makers.
Buildings of the University of Wisconsin
In 1997, former UW student Jim Feldman published The Buildings of the University of Wisconsin. It was the first comprehensive account of all of the physical structures that make up the UW-Madison campus—from heating plants and parking structures to the more stately facades of Bascom and Science Halls.
This digital collection combines the original text with additional images of the buildings.
Science Hall, c. 1887
Early Hoofers History
Hoofers had its start in 1931, when a professor, an administrator, and several students joined forces to promote outdoor activities and to provide access to recreational equipment. Hoofers has since grown to become one of the largest student outdoor recreation organizations in the country and currently has approximately 2,200 members in six clubs: Sailing, Ski and Snowboard, Riding, Mountaineering, Outing, and SCUBA.
This timeline traces the history of the Hoofers organization from the 1920s through the 1970s.
Hoofers coed ski jumpers, c. 1947
The Brittingham Family
Thomas Evans and Mary Clark Brittingham were one of Madison's most recognizable couples in the early 1900s. A combination of wealth, social status, and affiliations enabled them to exert influence on the policies and landscape of their city.
This narrative about the family is illustrated with images from the Brittingham Family Lantern Slide Collection, recently digitized by UW-Madison.
Brittingham children in the snow, 1901
"Health and Fun Shall Walk Hand in Hand": The First 100 Years of Women's Athletics at UW-Madison
In 2004 the University of Wisconsin-Madison celebrated the 30th anniversary of women's intercollegiate athletics. But women's sports at Wisconsin enjoy a much older and richer tradition than this milestone suggests.
This narrative traces the history of Wisconsin women's athletics back to the 19th Century.
Women sprinters, 1921
Alan "The Horse" Ameche
Alan "The Horse" Ameche played football at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1951-1954. A consensus All-American, Ameche was Wisconsin's first Heisman trophy winner, in 1954. After graduating from UW, Ameche was drafted by the Baltimore Colts and played six seasons for them.
Alan Ameche, 1953
Chancellors of the University of Wisconsin-Madison
Brief biographical sketches and photographs of every chief executive of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, starting with John Hiram Lathrop in 1849.
Includes a link to a similar page about the presidents of the University of Wisconsin system.
Hiram Lathrop
First Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin
The Cultural Landscape of the UW-Madison Campus
This photo gallery was developed as a research tool to inventory and assess cultural landscape resources on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. While individual buildings help to define the landscape, the focus of this collection is not so much on the structures themselves, but on how the buildings help to define an outdoor space.
In addition to looking at specific campus sectors, a broad archaeological survey of campus was conducted, focusing on nearly 100 acres of campus lands where several new ancient habitation sites were identified.
Observatory Hill Burial Mound
The History of Women at the University of Wisconsin
The History of Women at the University of Wisconsin collection augments the general histories of the University by focusing on the roles and activities of women students, faculty, and staff and on the development of women's studies throughout the System.
The initial collection consists of seven works published by the University between 1980 and 2001.
Take back the night rally, 1982
Mildred Fish Harnack
The story of Mildred Fish Harnack, Wisconsin native and UW-Madison graduate. Mildred was executed by the Nazis in 1943 for her association with the Red Orchestra, a German anti-Hitler resistance movement. Includes photographs, documents, samples of Mildred's writing, and correspondence between Mildred and her husband, Arvid Harnack, also executed by the Nazis.
Mildred Fish Harnack, 1926
Wisconsin Electronic Reader
Stories, essays, letters, poems, biographies, journals and tidbits from Wisconsin history. Contains a wealth of profusely illustrated first-hand accounts. A cooperative digital imaging project of the University of Wisconsin-Madison General Library System and the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.
First photo of a University of Wisconsin band
Ecology and Natural Resources Collection
This collection contains unique and valuable titles on ecology and natural resources, as well as writings about research conducted by University of Wisconsin faculty and staff, including:
- Arboretum Unpublished Research Works
- Images from the Aldo Leopold Papers, 1903-1948
- Virginia M. Kline Collection: Ecological Communities of Wisconsin
- Wisconsin Land Economic Inventory Maps (Bordner Survey)
Prunus americana flowers, East Curtis Prairie
UW-Madison Arboretum
Home Economics to Human Ecology: A Centennial History at the University of Wisconsin - Madison
Home Economics to Human Ecology is a digital collection of photographs and ephemera illustrating aspects of the past 100 years at the School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The collection also contains the full-text of Rima D. Apple's The Challenge of Constantly Changing Times: From Home Economics to Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin--Madison 1903-2003
Food Chemistry Lab, c. 1915
The State of Wisconsin Collection
Materials about the State of Wisconsin and its history and ongoing development. These published and archival materials were digitized from a variety of formats including books, manuscripts, sound recordings, photographs, and maps. Includes many resources closely related to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, including:
- Board of Regents Reports to the Governor, 1852-1914 (click on Public Documents of the State of Wisconsin)
- Transactions of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters
- The Story of Madison, by Reuben Gold Thwaites
Christmas tree and patients at Bradley Memorial Hospital
in Madison, Wisconsin
From Wisconsin Traditions of Social Care collection
The Literature Collection
The Literature Collection is a multi layered grouping of works in literature and the humanities. From medieval to modern, scholarly to satirical, there is something for everyone.
Includes the full text of the Wisconsin Literary Magazine from 1903-1929, to which many University of Wisconsin-Madison students and faculty contributed over the years.
Women Reading, c. 1915