Archiving history

From historical manuscripts to rare photographs, University Libraries' Special Collections offers countless opportunities to discover the past from a first-person perspective. Explore some of what the archives hold.

At the end of “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” an old man wheels a box containing the titular Ark of the Covenant to its resting place in an enormous warehouse — a nondescript box among a sea of nondescript boxes, with nothing signifying the treasure inside. This is a bit like what it feels like to explore University Libraries’ Special Collections, the University’s home for rare and archival materials. Through its many materials, Special Collections tells the history of our city, state, country and world.

Labor archives of Washington

The Labor Archives was founded in 2010 to preserve the records of working people and their unions, ensuring future generations have access to the rich labor history of the region.

Novelist and poet Carlos Bulosan was born in the Philippine Archipelago in 1913, and grew up facing economic hardship. After emigrating to the U.S. at age 17 — in the midst of the Great Depression — he worked as a migrant farmer up and down the West Coast, where he often experienced racism.

Taking action, Bulosan used his pen to share the plight of migrant farmworkers and support the labor movement, including the Cannery Workers and Farm Laborers Union, Local 7, a largely Filipino American trade union in Seattle. He gained national recognition in the 1940s with the publication of several novels, including “America is in the Heart” and “The Laugher of My Father.” An essay by Bulosan accompanied Norman Rockwell’s iconic “Freedom from Want” painting in the Saturday Evening Post in 1943.

A rare photograph of Carlos Bulosan (1913-1956); most existing photos of Bulosan depict him with a stoic expression, rather than the warm smile featured here.

A rare photograph of Carlos Bulosan (1913-1956); most existing photos of Bulosan depict him with a stoic expression, rather than the smile featured here.

A sign from the Seattle Industrial Workers of the World’s Seattle office. IWW members were known as the “Wobblies.” In 1916, several Wobblies were killed in an altercation with Everett, Washington, police and citizen vigilantes, an event remembered as the Everett Massacre.

A sign from the Seattle Industrial Workers of the World’s Seattle office. IWW members were known as the “Wobblies.” In 1916, several Wobblies were killed in an altercation with Everett, Washington, police and citizen vigilantes, an event remembered as the Everett Massacre.

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An orotone of Mt. Rainier across Mirror Lake.

An orotone of Mt. Rainier across Mirror Lake.

Special Collections’ photography collection features a wide range of both regional and international images, from (countless) photos of Mount Rainier, to photos of the Boxer Rebellion in China. It also includes other visual materials, such as menus from historic Pacific Northwest restaurants.

“Most photographers make photographs for documentary purposes, but orotones were intended to be pieces of art, and they’re fairly rare,” explains Visual Materials Curator Nicolette Bromberg. The art form was popular mainly in the Western U.S. during the early 1900s, which partly explains their rarity.

To make an orotone, a photographer would place a positive on glass, then cover the back with bronzing powder, which gives the finished product its glowing yellow-gold hue, hence the term orotone.

 

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The Moving Image Collection covers the evolution of film, from 35mm to Super 8 video to digital. Films in the collection range from home movies to documentaries, and some of the more notable items include footage of Charles Lindbergh visiting Seattle in 1927 and President John F. Kennedy at the opening of a power plant at the Hanford Nuclear Site.

When University Libraries staff came across abandoned newsreels after a storage unit sale, they were astonished at what they found: Footage of community events in Grays Harbor County, Washington, from the 1920s and ’30s. The newsreels depict the everyday happenings of life in the area, from school fire drills to parades to logging camps.

Together with UWTV and the Polson Museum in Hoquiam, Washington, Special Collections staff produced a documentary about the newsreels — “Grays Harbor Happenings: The newsreels of C.D. Anderson” — as well as their significance among the communities featured. The film premiered in Grays Harbor County and received widespread acclaim, including a Telly Award.

The full 27-minute documentary is available on YouTube.

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Nettie Craig Asberry

Nettie Craig Asberry

The Pacific Northwest Collection has thousands of materials documenting the people, history and culture of the region, with areas such as “Exploration & Discovery,” “Conservation and the Environment” and “Linguistics and Anthropology.”

Musician, pioneer, community leader — Nettie Craig Asberry was a woman ahead of her time. Asberry was born in Kansas in 1865, the youngest of six children and the only one of her siblings born free; her father was the owner of the plantation on which her mother was a slave. Asberry is believed to be the first African American woman to receive a Ph.D., which she earned at the Kansas Conservatory of Music and Elocution.

She arrived in Washington state in 1890, and became a champion of rights for women and the local African American community. She was a founding member of the Tacoma NAACP, formed the Washington State Federation of Women’s Clubs and worked as both a music teacher and volunteer social worker.

The Nov. 2, 1926, entry for a meeting of the Progressive Mothers’ Club of Tacoma, of which Nettie Craig Asberry was a member.

The Nov. 2, 1926, entry for a meeting of the Progressive Mothers’ Club of Tacoma, of which Nettie Craig Asberry was a member.

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The largest repository of its kind in the Pacific Northwest, the Architectural Drawings Collection is an invaluable resource for the UW community. Architecture students can examine drawings from the early 1900s or pore over ambitious proposals for Seattle’s 1961 World’s Fair, including one pretty recognizable idea: the Space Needle.

An original blueprint for part of the Pioneer Building, which was built in 1889. The building was the tallest in Washington state from 1892 to 1904.

An original blueprint for part of the Pioneer Building, which was built in 1889. The building was the tallest in Washington state from 1892 to 1904.

Built in 1892 on the spot where Henry Yesler established Seattle’s first sawmill, the Pioneer Building watched the city develop around it, and has become the focal point of the Pioneer Square neighborhood. During the Klondike Gold Rush, for instance, 48 different mining firms had offices in the building. After Pioneer Square’s renaissance in the 1970s, the building was designated as a historic landmark.

architectural design specifications for the Pioneer Building

Design specifications for the Pioneer Building, hand-written by the architect.

University of Washington Archives

In addition to archiving the world around us, Special Collections has also carefully curated the history of the University. Papers from retired professors sit across an aisle from presidential documents, all reflecting the people who have shaped the UW for over 150 years.

(Left) UW President Lee Paul Sieg’s letter to fellow university presidents across the country, his effort to get the UW’s Nisei students out of Washington state after Executive Order 9066, and (right) the list of presidents and universities he wrote to.

(Left) UW President Lee Paul Sieg’s letter to fellow university presidents across the country, his effort to get the UW’s Nisei students out of Washington state after Executive Order 9066, and (right) the list of presidents and universities he wrote to.

In 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which led to the internment of some 120,000 Japanese Americans (primarily those who lived on the Pacific coast) during WWII. Knowing that Japanese students at the UW would be forced to leave campus, University President Lee Paul Sieg wrote to his peers at universities across the country, beseeching them to accept the UW’s Nisei students in order to get them out of Washington state.

A page from legendary UW rowing coach Al Ulbrickson’s practice logbook. Ulbrickson was the coach from “The Boys in the Boat,” who led the UW varsity team to Olympic gold at the 1936 summer games in Berlin. The page on the right is his final selection for the Olympic team.

A page from legendary UW rowing coach Al Ulbrickson’s practice logbook. Ulbrickson was the coach from “The Boys in the Boat,” who led the UW varsity team to Olympic gold at the 1936 summer games in Berlin. The page on the right is his final selection for the Olympic team.

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Books, journals and articles from the past millennia catalogue evolving techniques and groundbreaking discoveries in science and medicine. For example, in just two editions over the span of a few years, an 18th-century guidebook on “malignant fever” had changed the disease’s name to what we call it today: yellow fever.

A page from Ulisse Aldrovandi’s “Monstrorum Historia,” published in 1642. The caption for this drawing, “puer capite elephantino,” translates roughly to “boy with an elephant’s head.”

A page from Ulisse Aldrovandi’s “Monstrorum Historia,” published in 1642. The caption for this drawing, “puer capite elephantino,” translates roughly to “boy with an elephant’s head.”

Published in 1642, Ulisse Aldrovandi’s “Monstrorum Historia” holds the author’s illustrations of creatures both real and mythical, including harpies, centaurs and those of his own invention. Aldrovandi is often referred to as the father of natural history, and throughout his career he amassed large botany and zoology collections from around the world. He’s also credited with inventing the word “geology.” His collections still reside in his native Bologna, Italy, some 400 years after his death.

In the early 18th and 19th centuries, advancements in medicine came quickly, resulting in medical books printing new editions every few years. The book on the left, published in 1793, is about “malignant fever;” on the right is the next edition of the book, published just five years later, featuring the name for malignant fever used today: yellow fever.

In the early 18th and 19th centuries, advancements in medicine came quickly, resulting in medical books printing new editions every few years. The book on the left, published in 1793, is about “malignant fever;” on the right is the next edition of the book, published just five years later, featuring the name for malignant fever used today: yellow fever.

Pages from Sir Edwin Saunders’s 1837 book “Advice on the Care of the Teeth,” which featured care instructions for 19th century dentists.

Pages from Sir Edwin Saunders’s 1837 book “Advice on the Care of the Teeth,” which featured care instructions for 19th century dentists.

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In a locked, climate-controlled room sit thousands of books from throughout history. The names on some boxes are familiar: Shakespeare, Hawthorne, Bacon. Just a few aisles down are beautifully made, limited-edition books from 2014. The items in this collection can’t be found on normal library stacks.

A page from artist Julie Chen’s pop-up book “Panorama.”

A page from artist Julie Chen’s pop-up book “Panorama.”

To artist Julie Chen, books are more than words on a page, they’re an art form and a vehicle for expression. No two of her pop-up books are alike, and they cover an equally diverse array of topics, from climate change to the fleeting sweetness of life. Her works are featured in libraries and museums around the world, including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

The inside cover of a 1794 printing of Sir Francis Bacon’s “ On the Proficiency of Learning,” part of Special Collection’s rare book collection.

The inside cover of a 1794 printing of Sir Francis Bacon’s “ On the Proficiency of Learning,” part of Special Collection’s rare book collection.

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Throughout the course of World War I, more than 4,000 UW students, alumni, faculty and staff served. Today, the 58 who lost their lives are honored at the entrance to Memorial Way on the UW’s campus in Seattle. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the U.S.’ entry into the war, Special Collections put together “Washington on the Western Front: At Home and Over There.” Throughout the course of the war, more than 4,000 UW students, alumni, faculty and staff served. Today, the 58 who lost their lives are honored at the entrance to Memorial Way on the UW’s campus in Seattle.

A pocketknife with an amputating saw, issued to Lloyd Utter.

A pocketknife with an amputating saw, issued to Lloyd Utter.

Running through January 2017, the exhibit focuses on the UW’s involvement in the Great War through photographs, diaries, newspapers, memorabilia and medical equipment.

nurse's uniform from WW1

WWI memorabilia from Seattle-area veterans (left). A nurse’s uniform from WWI (right).


Did you know that anyone can use Special Collections’ items? Whether you’re an undergraduate student conducting research or simply someone who wants to learn more about a particular topic, access is open to the public.

Learn more about using and visiting Special Collections.