Tracking student life at the University of Chicago can be a daunting challenge. Today the University supports more than 300 Registered Student Organizations (RSOs). These groups provide a focus for an amazing range of student activities – community service, political advocacy, sports, fine arts, Greek life, cultural and ethnic associations, and spirituality, among others. Beyond the University RSOs, student life includes residence hall and apartment life, and extends to experiences across the neighborhood and city, whether in coffee shops and restaurants, galleries, volunteer agencies, political campaigns, or beyond.
Understanding the history of student life is equally complex. Since the University of Chicago opened in 1892, students have organized an amazing array of social, academic, cultural, residential, athletic, literary, and political groups. Student activities have run the gamut: publishing magazines, yearbooks, and newsletters; staging theatrical performances and art exhibits; broadcasting radio shows; putting on formal dances; showcasing documentary and classic films, and raising funds for community causes. More than a few of these interests can be traced back to the mid-nineteenth century, when student organizations flourished on the campus of the first University of Chicago founded in 1857.
Collecting and preserving this diverse and fascinating student history is part of the mission of the University Archives. We Are Chicago displays some of the most fascinating documents, photographs, and artifacts from the archival collections. Some were donations presented by individual alumni or their families. Others were responses to appeals in the alumni magazine or gifts of student organizations, fraternities, and clubs. Taken together, these unique historical items show the range of the archival collections, but they also suggest the many gaps waiting to be filled. The University Archives welcomes donations from alumni, students, and community neighbors who have historical materials on student life that can be preserved and made available to the students and researchers of the future.
About this Exhibit
We Are Chicago, part of the Discover Hidden Archives Treasures exhibition series, was curated by archivists Eileen A. Ielmini, Kathleen Feeney, Ashley Locke, Isabel Gonzalez, and Judith Dartt with invaluable assistance provided by Daniel Meyer, Director, Special Collections Research Center and graduate students Laura Alagna and Adam Paradis.
The Web exhibit was produced by Joe Scott. Bradley Busenius provided technical and graphic design support.
Rights and Reproductions
In its capacity as owner of the physical property represented in this Web exhibit, the University of Chicago Library encourages the use of these materials for educational and scholarly purposes.
Use of these materials for publication in any medium also requires the permission of the University of Chicago Library. Use of materials for commercial publication projects may be subject to a use fee. Please consult the policies of the Special Collections Research Center. It is the user's sole responsibility to secure any necessary copyright permission to publish documents, texts, and images from any holders of rights for these materials.
For further information on reproduction of materials from the Special Collections Research Center, please contact the Special Collections Research Center.
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A view of the gallery installation. |
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We Are Chicago: Athletics |
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A view of the gallery installation. |
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This ribbon was the piece of fabric used by the administrative and student committees when voting for the new university color. |
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The institution known as the Old University of Chicago was originally established as the University of Chicago in 1856 on a ten-acre tract of land donated by Senator Stephen A. Douglas. The Baptist university was constantly plagued by financial difficulties and was forced to close in 1886. At its final meeting in 1890, the Board of Trustees changed the name of the institution to the Old University of Chicago so that the new Baptist school being organized as a completely separate legal entity might be called the University of Chicago. |
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Report card for Gertrude M. Bundy, 1884. Old University of Chicago. Records. |
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Washington Supper Program, 1882. Old University of Chicago. Records. |
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We Are Chicago: Film/Theater/Muscicals |
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A view of the gallery installation. |
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We Are Chicago: Amusements The satirical student group Students for Violent Non-Action sponsored a "Libertine Arts Conference" - a parody of the University's long-running Liberal Arts Conference - in 1970 which culminated in a Lascivious Costume Ball held at Ida Noyes Hall. The event featured a performance by Chicago Blues musician Eddie Clearwater, a nude swim in the Ida Noyes pool, pornography screenings and strip shows, and a costume contest. |
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We Are Chicago: Amusements A selection highlighting the Washington Prom. |
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Visitors were invited to write down their University of Chicago memories. The cards are now part of the Archives collection. |
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One of the memories left by a visitor. |
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A view of the gallery installation. |
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The Archival Textile Collection holdings include University of Chicago related T-shirts donated by students, faculty and alumni from their time at the university. Often ubiquitous on college campuses, T-shirts can collectively represent students' school spirit, residential life, campus activities, and sense of humor. |
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Women's Athletic Association Letterman Sweater; Banner presented to University of Chicago Tennis Champion, Max Davidson; C blanket, ca. 1934. |
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Marjorie Whitney was a Riverside, Illinois native and graduated from the University in 1941 with a degree in History. Marjorie was an accomplished musician but her first love was dance. She was a member of the University of Chicago Mirror Review dramatic association for most of her undergraduate years and performed in other local theaters productions. Her mother, Mathilde made most of her costumes. The Prass collection contains over 200 pieces of costume clothing and accessories. |
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Selections from the Marjorie Whitney Prass Collection. |
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From performances to protests, the posters and broadsides that blanket campus reflect the breadth of student activities and interests at The University of Chicago. |
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A view of the gallery installation. |
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We Are Chicago: Student Organizations |
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We Are Chicago: Student Organizations |
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We Are Chicago: Activism |
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We Are Chicago: Activism |
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We Are Chicago: Campus Life |
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Photograph album, 1899-1900. Hedwig L. Loeb. Papers. Hedwig Loeb (1879-1981) received her A.B. in 1902 in history and political science. She worked at Hull House and the American Red Cross just out of college. Her album illustrates campus life, dorm rooms, and areas around Chicago. The blue images are referred to as cyanotype, a photographic process that uses Prussian blue for the image to produce a positive print from a negative. |
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We Are Chicago: Campus Life |
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John Manfred Rise (1898-1970) was a student in the college from 1918 to 1920. His letters paint a vivid picture of student life at the University of Chicago during the late 'teens. He comments on campus food, the entertainment available in Hyde Park and Chicago, class work and lectures, and late night talks with friends where such questions as whether or not all women were "inveterate liars" were discussed. From these papers, one gleans an idea not only of early student life at the University of Chicago, but also a sense of the character of the student experience. |
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Photographs of city and campus, ca. 1918-1920. John Manfred Rise. Papers. |
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Photograph, Convocation Day, June 10, 1930.
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