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UNI Historical Collections Index

fifty_years

Fifty Years at the Teachers College

This book, subtitled "Historical & Personal Reminiscences," was written by David Sands Wright in 1926.  Wright taught the first class on opening day of the Iowa State Normal School on September 6, 1876.  He was a professor in the Department of Mathematics and the current Wright Hall bears his name.  The book contains many photos, including the first faculty and first graduating class.

   
Jazz Band One album cover

Jazz Band One

The School of Music at the University of Northern Iowa is recognized as one of the finest college music programs in the Midwest . Offering programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels, the School of Music offers many ensemble performance opportunities for students including marching and symphonic bands, numerous choral ensembles, orchestra, and jazz ensembles. The jazz studies program has been recognized at the national and international level for the quality of its graduates and for the many outstanding performances and recordings of the jazz band. This audio collection showcases the artistry of the UNI jazz band in recordings made in the 1980's, 1990's, and today.

   
Northern Iowa Symphony Orchestra album cover

Northern Iowa Symphony Orchestra

The Northern Iowa Symphony Orchestra has been entertaining Cedar Valley residents for many decades. This collection of recordings demonstrates the beauty and technique of the music students in the School of Music at UNI.
   
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia crest

Sinfonian Dimensions in Jazz

The Beta Nu Chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, a national music fraternity, began sponsoring an annual jazz concert at UNI in February 1951. The first show consisted of several musicians gathered in the student union, called the Commons, and jamming. By 1953, the show, called "Dimensions in Jazz", had gained such popularity that two shows were scheduled. Performing at the concerts were jazz band ensembles and choruses. The clips of music in this collection are from recordings made of number of those lively concerts.
   
Central Hall/Soldiers' Orphans' Home

Specifications for Soldiers' Orphans' Home

Central Hall was built in 1869 as one of Iowa's Soldiers' Orphans' Homes to house children orphaned by the Civil War.  These handwritten plans, bound with the original cloth cover, detail the building specifications used for its construction.

   
UNI Campanile

UNI Campanile

View photos of the Campanile, its presence on the UNI campus, the chime masters and chimers, the bells, and the clock. The range is through its lifespan (beginning in 1926) and through all seasons.

The photos included here are a sample from the Special Collections Dept. in the Rod Library. The number one photo request in Special Collections is Campanile photos. For more information about the UNI Campanile, see the Rod Library Special Collections site at http://www.library.uni.edu/speccoll/bh/bhcampan.html

   

Old Gold Yearbook Cover 1911

UNI Yearbook

University of Northern Iowa's yearbooks have had several titles over the years.  The first yearbook in 1905 was named the "Normal Eyte," followed by the 1906 "Pedagog."  The yearbook then became the "Old Gold" and kept that title from 1907 until 1969.  From 1969 to 1972, the yearbook changed to the "UNI Quarterly," when publication of the yearbook was suspended.  The "Old Gold" resumed in 1979 until the last one published in 1997.