University of Nebraska Kearney
2508 11th Avenue
Kearney, NE 68849-2240
Email: weissell@unk.edu
Tel: (308) 865-8593
The Archives has been relocated during renovation. Walk-in is unavailable. Please schedule appointments so we can retrieve materials before your visit.
The Archives Collection Development policy is available in pdf format.
OpenSPACES@UNK is the digital repository of the University of Nebraska at Kearney. OpenSPACES@UNK supports UNK’s core values through stewardship of the University’s intellectual property. Research, scholarship, and creative works of faculty, students and staff are gathered, preserved, and shared with a global audience. OpenSPACES also makes available University publications, images, and recordings, as well as Archives and Special Collections materials. The collections reflect the quality, depth, and diversity of the intellectual activity of the UNK community. OpenSPACES@UNK is administered by the Calvin T. Ryan Library and serves as a digital home for these materials.
Nebraska Scholarly Commons, provided by the University of Nebraska Consortium of Libraries (UNCL), serves all four University of Nebraska campuses--Kearney, Lincoln, Medical Center, and Omaha.
The Special Collection is comprised of materials on select subject areas, such as the history of Nebraska, the Great Plains, and settlement of the West. For this Collection the Library is committed to assembling primary and secondary scholarly materials on specific topics that support UNK's curricular and research needs.
All materials in the Special Collection have been catalogued and can be identified using the "Search" box on the Library's home page. Materials may only be used in the Archives. Unless the materials are deemed too fragile, the archivist will scan requested items. Photography of most items is also permitted.
The University Archives are comprised of several collections of materials produced by the institution in the course of conducting its business. Materials date from as early as 1905, and include items as diverse as the deeds to the land the University occupies to the copper container used as the time capsule when the Administration Building was built. Materials are collected in all formats, including original papers and documents, publications, photographs, and audiotapes.
About 1700 items have been catalogued and can be identified using the "Search" box on the Library's home page. Most of the items have not been catalogued, however, but can be identified using one of the finding aids listed below.
Please note that some items have not been processed. If you cannot find what you need, please consult the University Archivist.
Finding aids are available for the following:The Blue and Gold yearbooks were published most years from 1908 through 1973, and from 1980 through 1990. Although the content varied as times changed, most volumes contain a section about faculty and staff, student photos by class, student organizations and life, as well as campus events and sports. Together, the Blue and Gold Yearbooks are an irreplaceable photographic chronicle of the institution through most of its history. About 40 print volumes are held in the Book Collection and can be checked out. For access to the print volumes held in the Archives, please consult a librarian. PDF files of all the yearbooks produced are available below.
1908 - 1929
1908
1910
1912
1915
1917
1919
1921
1923
1924
1925
1926
1927
1928
1929
1930 - 1939
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940 - 1949
1940
1941
1942
1943
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950 - 1959
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960 - 1969
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965-1
1965-2
1966-1
1966-2
1967-1
1967-2
1968-1
1968-2
1969-1
1969-2
1970 - 1990
1970-1
1970-2
1971-1
1971-2
1972-1
1972-2
1973-1
1973-2
1980-1
1980-2
1981-1
1981-2
1982-1
1982-2
1983-1
1983-2
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
Antelope issues from 2016 & 2017 can be found on OpenSpaces@UNK.
More recent issues are available on the Antelope website.
As with items in Special Collections, materials may only be used in the Archives. Unless the materials are deemed too fragile, the archivist will scan requested items. Photography of most items is also permitted.
The University Archives and Special Collections are available to anyone with a need for them. While walk-ins are welcome, archivist assistance is usually necessary for identifying relevant materials and using them; you are encouraged to contact the archivist before visiting. If you would like more information about the Archives and Special Collections, please contact Laurinda Weisse or Jenny Haddon.
If would like to make an appointment select the Schedule Appointment button below.