Search

Sarah Parke Morrison became the first woman admitted to Indiana University in 1867. Collection consists of personal papers of Sarah Parke Morrison in three series: Correspondence, 1897-1913, consisting primarily of outgoing correspondence. Frequent correspondents include former Indiana University President William Lowe Bryan and Registrar John W. Cravens. The correspondence all dates from the years after she left IU and much of it discusses her desire that women become members of the various University boards. Schedules, 1855-1856, consists of a single schedule of a typical day for Morrison at the Western Female College; and Writings, 1911-1912, includes a handwritten account of Morrison's entrance and experience as the first female student at IU and a small pamphlet of Morrison's poetry published in 1912.

The Indiana University Alumni Association was founded in 1854 as an organization through which graduates could contribute to the pursuit of university interests. Members of the Association held semi-annual meetings, first as the Alumni Association and later in separate branches, including the Alumni Council, established in 1913 (later called the Executive Council). This collection consists primarily of the minutes of the IU Alumni Association, Alumni Council, Executive Council, and Board of Managers meetings spanning 1854-2011.

Arthur R. Metz was a student at Indiana University from 1904-1909 and one of the first recipients of the IU Distinguished Alumni Service Award. He was a doctor who served in multiple capacities including for hospitals, railroads, the military, corporations, and universities and also was a member of many medical organizations. The collection consists of Metz's family records, school materials, personal and professional correspondence, personal photographs, military and travel materials and photographs, magazine and newspaper clippings, medical and organizational publications, and professional certificates. There are also papers and photographs documenting the Metz Foundation and Metz Suite.

A prominent family in the Bloomington community, Indiana University purchased land from the Dunn family in order to relocate the university to its current site after the devastating fire of 1883 at the Seminary Square location. Family members represented in this collection include George Grundy Dunn Sr., Moses Fell Dunn, and William McKee Dunn. The collection includes correspondence, writings, deeds and other real estate documents, insurance contracts, miscellaneous receipts, cemetery drawings and plot plans for Dunn Cemetery, located on the I.U. Bloomington campus, and family photos.

The Woodburn family first settled in Bloomington, Indiana, in 1830, having relocated from Chester County, South Carolina. This collection consists of personal correspondence and other material of family members of James Albert Woodburn (1856-1943), a professor of history at Indiana University (1890-1924), including his father James Woodburn, wife Caroline Gelston Woodburn, brothers Walter E. and Theophilus Wylie Woodburn, son James Gelston Woodburn, and granddaughter Janet Wiecking. Collection materials date from 1848-1978 and notably include Caroline Gelston Woodburn's letters describing her experiences as a new member of the Bloomington and Indiana University communities in the early 1890s, and a photocopy of James Gelston Woodburn's diary ("My Trip Abroad"), which documents his trip to Europe in 1911-1912.

William Wylie Blair entered Indiana University in 1845. He attended through the 1848 school year, but did not graduate. This small collection consists of six essays written by Blair while he was a student at IU as well as an 1848 letter written to Blair and friend Jonathan Dixon Wylie by former classmate James Strean, who was an IU student at the time of writing.

Homer Wheeler attended Indiana University from 1844-1846, studying law, literature and theology. His collection contains four letters between Homer and his brother Maro Wheeler. Letters discuss Homer Wheeler's arrival in Bloomington, his involvement with the Philomathean Society, and his job prospects upon graduation.

This collection consists of the family papers of Indiana University professor Cecilia Hennel Hendricks spanning the period from 1839 through 1970. Included are papers relating to the academic careers of Cecilia, Associate Professor of English, and her sister Cora, Professor of Mathematics at Indiana University, as well as manuscripts and writings by both women. Also found in the collection are papers and correspondence of family members: father Joseph B. Hennel, mother Anna M. Thuman Hennel, Cecilia's husband John Hendricks, and sister Edith Hennel Ellis.

This collection consists of the family papers of Indiana University alumni John and Hilda Jay. The collection primarily consists of correspondence between John, Hilda, and family or friends largely spanning 1939-2002; personal files containing educational materials, a journal, and a scrapbook; as well as several home movies from circa 1939-1946.

The Edgeworthalean Society was a ladies' literary society founded in 1841 by twelve women of Monroe County in Bloomington, Indiana, and was named after the English author, Maria Edgeworth. The goal of the society was to cultivate and improve the minds of the women through recitations, composition arguments, reading, writing, diction, analyzing sentences, and so on. Each meeting a question for debate was posed and roles assigned for the next meeting. The society met on a weekly basis in the Monroe County Female Seminary which was founded for women in 1818. The date of the last recorded meeting minutes was June 14, 1844. There is no indication of why the society ended. The collection consists of one minute book containing the society's constitution, by-laws, and meeting minutes.

John Robert Cravens was a graduate of Indiana University. This collection includes correspondence and lecture notes from John Robert Cravens' senior year at Indiana University, 1839-1840. He later became a lawyer and one of Indiana's leading statesmen.

William Tinsley was an architect from Dublin, Ireland; he is well-known in his profession for designing part of the original Indiana University Bloomington campus. This collection consists of a journal written by William Tinsley and two of his children, Charles and Harvey.

The Philomathean Society was one of two major literary societies on campus. It was founded in 1831 and was last listed in the university catalogue in 1893. This collection primarily consists of programs for the group's annual Spring Exhibition with a fairly complete run between 1844 and 1886. Also included in the collection is a series of published speeches and one partial constitution.

General meetings of the Indiana University faculty began in 1835, to discuss the industriousness of its students, calling student rolls, and hearing reports on the work and standing of each of the students. Disciplinary measures, dismissals, and exams for students were also discussed during many of the meetings throughout the nineteenth century. By the 1920s, the faculty had grown to such a point that it was necessary to create a representative body of the faculty, but the faculty as a whole continued to meet with some regularity. Today the faculty body rarely meet, but may be convened by the IU president, the Secretary of the University Faculty Council, or on petition signed by voting faculty members numbering no less than 5% of all voting faculty members.

William Daily was a Methodist minister, and served as president of Indiana University, 1853-1859. The collection includes correspondence, speeches, financial records, administrative records relating to his presidency at Indiana University; most prominent are records relating to charges brought against Daily during his presidency.

Jacob Ammen (1806-1894) was a professor and military officer for the Union army during the American Civil War. After graduating from West Point and serving in the military, he taught at various institutions of higher education, including Indiana University, where he served as professor and chair of the Mathematics Department from 1840 to 1843. Following his teaching career, he returned to military service after the outbreak of the Civil War, attaining to the rank of Brigadier General. This collection consists of correspondences, personal writings, and military artifacts kept by Ammen throughout his academic and military career from 1835 through 1865.

The Indiana University Trustees serve as the governing board of the university. Created in 1820, the current Board meets six times per year. Among the Board's powers are their capacity to possess all the real and personal property of the university; to expend the income of the university; and to all bylaws necessary to carry these powers into effect. The minutes in this collection include official acts, resolutions, policies, agreements, and other business pertaining to the governance of Indiana University between 1838-1859 and 1883-2017.

Indiana family headed by Joseph Kirkman, who served as sheriff of Gibson County for several years. Collection includes correspondence, indentures, receipts, land deeds, and newspaper clippings of Joseph Kirkman, daughter Irene Kirkman Coolidge, and granddaughter Mary Coolidge Kingston. Also included is a series titled Unknown authors, consisting of items of unknown origins but that were deposited with the collection.

Joseph Bradford began acquiring land in Martinsville, Indiana, in the mid-1800s. The Bradford Sand Mining Company was founded by Joseph's son, Perry Bradford, in 1877 in Morgan County, Indiana. The family business was passed on to Albert and John Bradford in the early 1900s. It remained in the family until 1938 when John Bradford deeded 900 acres of the Bradford property to Indiana University. This property is currently known as the Bradford Woods. The Bradford family papers span 1831-1941 and consist of various financial and business records related to their property, as well as documentation of family history and family correspondence. The correspondence primarily dates from 1898 and consists largely of letters written to the Bradfords by Eliza (Bradford) and husband Dr. Grant Monical from Camp George in Georgia and later Cuba where Grant was a Captain in the Spanish-American War.

The Ketcham and Piercy families were prominent in Indiana politics, journalism, and education during the 19th and 20th centuries. This collection consists of photographs, correspondence, journals, diaries, publications, speeches, legal documents, genealogical materials, and academic regalia from the Ketcham and Piercy families. Family members represented in this collection include: Colonel John Ketcham, John Lewis Ketcham, Reverend John H. Ketcham, Martha S. Ketcham, Charles B. Ketcham, Mary Ketcham Piercy, her husband, journalist and Indiana University faculty member Joseph W. Piercy, and Indiana University faculty member Josephine K. Piercy.