The Louisa H. Bowen University Archives and Special Collections preserves materials pertaining to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and to the history of Southwestern Illinois.
For additional information contact Steve Kerber at 650-2665 or skerber@siue.edu.
Reference and research assistance is provided to the National Ragtime and Jazz Archive and the Music Special Collections.
For additional information contact Therese Dickman at 650-2695 or tdickma@siue.edu.
The Alumnus, the official alumni magazine of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, began publication in 1973. It was published four times a year and featured articles by and about SIUE faculty, graduates, administrators, staff, and students. It ended in 1997 with a special edition featuring historical photographs in honor of SIUE's fortieth anniversary.
American Civil War Collection
This digital collection is an assemblage of handwritten letters, songsheets, and military orders. Spanning the entire period of the American Civil War (1861-1865), these items gathered together provide a unique and insightful glimpse into the era.
Colket Illustrated Sheet Music
This digital collection consists of 96 pieces of historic, illustrated sheet music from Lovejoy Library's Gordon Colket Music Collection. Gordon Wright Colket was a dealer in illustrative materials who assembled the collection over a period of six or seven years. Most of the pieces are by 19th century American composers and include detailed cover lithographs. The collection is rich in Civil War vintage pieces. Selected titles are presented with digital audio files of piano performances.
Drumvoices Revue is a multicultural literary journal published by Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in collaboration with the Eugene B. Redmond Writers Club of East St. Louis, Illinois. The digital collection contains the complete run including 16 volumes, beginning with volume 1, nos. 1 & 2 (fall-winter 1991/92), and supplements 1-12.
EBR African American Cultural Life
This digital collection contains photographs, posters, and pamphlets selected from the Eugene B. Redmond (EBR) Collection at Lovejoy Library. An Emeritus Professor of English at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Redmond's work as a poet, activist, teacher, and mentor has put him in contact with other artists both iconic and unheralded over the last thirty years. The materials here reveal the diversity and support for the cultural and political activities that flourished across the spectrum of African American life from the 1960s to the present.
Irving Dilliard Letters
This digital collection contains the personal correspondence of 109 published authors to a young man named Irving Dilliard. As Dilliard explains: "My high school years were 1921-1923. I was thinking about a career in writing, perhaps on a newspaper...So I decided to get some advice. I began to write to the authors of the time and ask them what they thought would be the best training for a writing career." Dilliard went on to become a respected writer, editor and expert on the Constitution and the Supreme Court.
KMOX Popular Sheet Music
This digital sheet music collection contains popular titles in the public domain dating from the early 20th Century.
This digital exhibit features selected Sullivan ornaments owned by SIUE representing thirty-one buildings. They are accompanied by digitized historic photographs by Richard Nickel, provided courtesy of the Richard Nickel Committee. A wide range of types of architectural elements are represented, including pediments, lunettes, columns, and even an elevator.
To honor all those who created and participated in the Mississippi River Festival (1969-1980), the University Archives & Special Collections staff, in collaboration with the Faculty Technology Center, have researched, written, and here assembled a series of projects documenting and interpreting the history of the festival. Included are: a narrated historical slideshow explaining the entire history of the festival; a virtual history museum consisting of a searchable database that includes information about all MRF performances and performers; an alphabetical name index of all MRF artists; digitized version of movies about the 1969 inaugural season and the 1975 season.
Muse Yearbooks
Muse is the yearbook of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, and was published from 1961-1971. This digital collection contains the eleven yearbooks.
Observer Newsletter
The SIUE Observer began life on December 18, 1978, as an administrative newsletter produced by the Office of the President of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The publication served primarily as the university administration's channel of communication to the staff, faculty, and students and as a "publication of record." Following the issue of March 16, 1999 (volume six, number thirteen), the Observer ceased to appear as a paper publication. The digital collection contains the entire run (647 issues) of the print publication.
Plants of SIUE
This digital collection features digital photographs of plant species found on the campus of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE). The images are accompanied by descriptions and scientific information. The collection is designed both as a teaching tool for botany students and a resource for lay-people with an interest in plants.
Shurtleff Pioneer Student Newspaper
The Shurtleff Pioneer is the student newspaper of Shurtleff College. The former Shurtleff College campus became the site of SIUE's "Alton Residence Center" in 1957 and the university's School of Dental Medicine in 1972. This digital collection reflects the Library’s physical holdings of the Pioneer and is comprised of many but not all published issues from the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.
Shurtleff Retrospect Yearbooks
The Retrospect is the yearbook of Shurtleff College. The former Shurtleff College campus became the site of SIUE's "Alton Residence Center" in 1957 and the university's School of Dental Medicine in 1972. This digital collection is comprised of yearbooks for 1911-1932, 1938-1942, and 1948-1956. It also includes a supplement featuring the graduating class of 1957.
Spalding's Soccer Foot Ball Guide
This digital collection consists of fourteen issues of the Spalding's Soccer Foot Ball Guide from the first decades of the twentieth century. The guides include statistics for United States soccer leagues, the rules of the game, information about the United States Football Association, and some information about international soccer. The collection also includes a volume from the Spalding's Athletic Library series covering the 1912 Olympic Games.
To Whom It May Concern: 19th Century Feminist Responses to "A Letter of Genteel and Moral Advice"
In the 19th century, women became more literary and developed themselves as individuals, preparing to contribute to society in new ways. This digital exhibit explores 19th century works from Lovejoy's Rare Book Collection in the context of a 1741 conduct book for young ladies, also from the library's collection.
William R. Townsend Civil War Diary
The images in this collection comprise the complete Civil War diary of Union soldier William R. Townsend. The diary covers the period from April 11, 1863 to February 2, 1864 and contains descriptions of camp life, battles, furlough and leisure activities, civilian interaction, and other information. An interpretive tour of the diary is found at http://siue.libguides.com/townsendcivilwardiary.
