I’m Documenting Student Life, and You Can Too

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Prison Justice Project informational flyer, 2014.
Prison Justice Project informational flyer, 2014.

Written by Nick Hopkins

The University of Illinois Student Life and Culture (SLC) Archives maintains documents spanning the entire history of the university. It is particularly focused on the experiences of students. Its collections include documents and photos of student organizations, Illio yearbooks, and sorority and fraternity publications, as well as a great deal of other student sources. The SLC Archives puts the history of student life at UIUC at the fingertips of visitors, for student projects, enjoyment, and professional research.

The SLC Archives also presents an opportunity for students to become part of this history. Students may donate papers of their organization to be archived in the Student Affairs series. Submitted materials are processed and boxed by archives staff, like myself, and are publicly available to view.

Preserving student history is important. One of my favorite student organization collections is the African-American Cultural Program Publications series. These sources are cited in UIUC alumna Joy Ann Williamson’s history of African-American student experiences and Project 500, Black Power on Campus: University of Illinois, 1965-75.  The documents allow Williamson to tell the story of black students at a racially contentious time in both university and U.S. history. Continue reading “I’m Documenting Student Life, and You Can Too” →

Shozo Sato: Reinventing Kabuki Theater

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Written by Nick Hopkins

Shozo Sato and theater students, 1969.
Shozo Sato and theater students, 1969.

Shozo Sato’s (1933- ) contributions to the performing arts have spanned a long, path-breaking career. A Professor of Art and Design at Illinois for 50 years, Sato gained international attention for his adaptation of classic western theater plays into Kabuki performances. In the process, Sato produced a new, hybrid genre of performance that blurs the boundaries between classical Western and Japanese theatres.

The Japanese director came to Illinois in 1964 as an artist-in-residence. With the opening of the Krannert Center for Performing Arts in 1969, he shifted his attention to theatre production. In 1978, he and a student cast performed “Kabuki Macbeth” at Krannert. The performance generated positive reviews in Champaign County, and went on to win three of Chicago’s J. Jefferson awards, for best production, director, and costuming. The success of “Kabuki Macbeth” put the director on the map. Continue reading “Shozo Sato: Reinventing Kabuki Theater” →

Pride Month 2015: LGBT History on Campus

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Written by Caitlin Stamm

Now that it’s June, we’ve begun Lesbian Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month (LGBT Pride Month). Pride Month is celebrated in honor of the Gay Liberation Movement’s Stonewall Riots, which occurred in New York City in late June 1969 [1]. After the riots in Manhattan, Pride groups formed at the U of I to fight for acceptance and change.

The announcement for the first meeting of the Gay Students' Alliance, which became Gay Illini
The announcement for the first meeting of the Gay Students’ Alliance, which became Gay Illini

The Gay Illini organization was formed in 1975 and Illini Pride was founded in 1977, both growing out of the work of the Gay Liberation Front. [2] Gay Illini was announced in the Daily Illini on January 29, 1975 [3]. By April 1975, the group was holding Gay Forums, offering panels discussing topics related to gay students and queer life. The group also hosted a number of social events, including dances, picnics, and movie nights.

The group acted as advocates on campus. Gay Illini often raised money for efforts like the Gay Information Switchboard, which ran on campus every night from 7 pm to 1 am [4]. They also formed a discrimination committee to “investigate discriminatory racial and sexual practices and policies at public places” [5]. Gay Illini marched in the Chicago Gay Pride Parades. Continue reading “Pride Month 2015: LGBT History on Campus” →

Campus Memories: Taking a Stroll Down Lovers’ Lane

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Written by Caitlin Stamm

Now that it is officially summer and campus has emptied out, it’s a perfect time to take a wander down memory lane. There’s no better place to start than by exploring Lovers’ Lane!

Cover of <em>The Siren</em>, October 1911
Cover of The Siren, October 1911

Lovers’ Lane was located on Daniel Street and Champaign, between Fourth Street and Wright Street [1], next to the Kappa Alpha Theta house. For decades, it was a spot close to campus where couples would gather to take walks.

From <em>The Siren</em>, November 1921
From The Siren, November 1921

Lovers’ Lane was even featured on the October 1911 cover of The Siren. It’s no wonder the lane, and its proximity to sorority houses, was profiled; The Siren’s editor lived on Daniel Street in the Beta Theta Pi house [2].

As the University replaced brick walkways with cement, a Champaign City ordinance necessitated the removal of the great trees to create a sidewalk [3]. A 1915 Daily Illini article notes, “The sentiment of the majority of people living along the street seems to be in-favor of making the new walk narrower so that the long, shaded lane may be spared to future generations of strolling lovers” [4]. This, however, was not to be the case. The trees were condemned after the fall of 1915 and all had been removed by 1926 [5]. Continue reading “Campus Memories: Taking a Stroll Down Lovers’ Lane” →

Full-Time Football Coach to Probate Judge: Arthur Hall and his Artifacts

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Cleats from the Arthur Hall Collection after visiting Conservation. Found in Record Series 28/3/24.
Cleats from the Arthur Hall Collection after visiting Conservation. Found in Record Series 28/3/24.

Written by Leanna Barcelona

After a semester at the University’s Conservation unit, the artifacts donated with the personal papers of the Illinois football coach Arthur Hall are now back at the archives and a part of his collection. The collection donated from his family contains several newspaper clippings spanning from the beginning of his football career to the end of his term as probate judge. Artifacts such as team sweaters, football uniforms, cleats, hats, and baseballs from his time here, as well as small Illini memorabilia, are also part of the collection and over a century old.

Postcard of Coach Hall, c. 1907. Found in Record Series 28/3/24.
Postcard of Coach Hall, c. 1907. Found in Record Series 28/3/24.

Arthur Raymond Hall was born in 1869 in Tonica Illinois and attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign from 1897-1902, graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Law and a Master’s Degree of English and Rhetoric from the College of Literature and Arts. As a student, he played on the Varsity baseball team in 1899 and the Varsity football team from 1897 through 1900, serving as the captain in his last season. In addition to varsity athletics, Hall was involved in the English Club, the Langdell Law Club, the Y.M.C.A., and the Philomathean Literary Society.[1]

Continue reading “Full-Time Football Coach to Probate Judge: Arthur Hall and his Artifacts” →