2008-04-11

The History, Philosophy and Newspaper Library of the University of Illinois Library is pleased to announce the launch of the digitized version of the Daily Illini for the years 1916 to 1936 . The project was made possible by support from a variety of sources within the Library, including the Stewart S. Howe Foundation Endowment (Student Life and Culture Archives), the Clifford Family Endowment (History, Philosophy and Newspaper Library), the Office of the Associate University Librarian for Collections, and a seed-grant program administered by the Library Executive Committee.

Perhaps more than any other original source document, historical newspapers provide a window onto the past. No other primary source conveys as readily and vividly the sensibility of an era and the feel of a place. Student newspapers offer a wealth of information about college life, youth culture, and the history of the host campus, but their value as source material goes far beyond the history of the university and the lives of the people who studied and taught there. They offer rich documentation of the history of larger social movements and cultural trends, from the development of the professions and the role of politics and religion in higher education to the changing meanings of race, ethnicity, gender, generation, and class in American society.

Do you have a story you’d like added to the Library News & Events? If so, please contact Heather Murphy ( hmurphy@illinois.edu ).