Anniversaries and celebrations collection

Collection

Identifier: MSS 179

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Anniversaries and celebrations collection, 1882-2011 and undated, contains materials related to various anniversary events and commemorations involving the Augustana College community, including events both directly and indirectly related to the college. The collection represents the following events: The 400th Anniversary of Martin Luther’s Birth, 1883, The Jubilee celebrating the 1593 Uppsala Synod, 1893, The Augustana College 50th Anniversary Jubilee, 1910, The Augustana College 75th Anniversary, 1935, The Centennial Commemorating the first Congregation of Swedish Lutherans in Midwestern America, 1948, The Augustana College Centennial, 1957-1960, The Augustana College in Rock Island Centennial, 1972-1975, The 500th Anniversary of Martin Luther’s Birth, 1983, The Augustana College Quasquicentennial, 1983-1985, The Augustana Heritage Sesquicentennial Gathering, 1998, The Augustana College Sesquicentennial, 2009-2011, and other events.

Dates

Creation: 1882-2011 and undated

Language of Materials

English and Swedish

Conditions Governing Access

There are no restrictions on the use of this collection. Audiovisual materials may be inaccessible pending reformatting. Contact Special Collections for more information.

Conditions Governing Use

Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from Augustana College Special Collections and the copyright holder.

Historical Note

The materials in this collection primarily relate to seminal events and anniversaries in the history of Augustana College, which was founded by Scandinavian Lutherans in Chicago, Illinois, in 1860. In 1863, the college was relocated to Paxton, Illinois, before permanently settling in Rock Island, Illinois, in 1875. Augustana College has organized celebrations of both its 1860 founding and its 1875 establishment in Rock Island.

In addition, Augustana College and its constituents have arranged and participated in celebrations honoring important moments in Lutheran history to commemorate the college’s religious affiliation, such as the founding of the Uppsala Synod of 1593, which marked the declaration of Lutheranism as the official church of Sweden. The Augustana University Association, a group founded in 1891 to raise the rank of Augustana College to University status through soliciting, hosted the 1893 Jubilee in honor of the Uppsala Synod as a fundraising measure. The college also celebrated various anniversaries of Martin Luther's birth.

One series of material in this collection relates to the Swedish Pioneer Centennial, a nationwide celebration of the 100th anniversary of Swedish immigration to the American Midwest, which began in 1848. Events were held throughout the summer of 1948, concentrated in the Midwest and Northeast, and an official Swedish delegation including Prince Bertil of Sweden traveled to the United States for the festivities. Although the centennial was not nominally associated with Augustana College, events associated with the centennial were held at the college, and several Augustana community members were involved in the planning for the event, including president Conrad Bergendoff, who headed the Swedish Pioneer Centennial Commission.

Extent

3.5 Cubic Feet (/ 7 boxes, 1 oversize box, and 1 AV box)

Additional Description

Abstract

Arrangement

Chronological.

Custodial History

There is no known accession information for this collection prior to April 2010. In April 2011, scattered anniversary and celebration materials from MSS 200 Augustana College exhibition materials were separated from that collection and filed in MSS 179. In addition, a box of Augustana College 125th Anniversary materials were separated from MSS 248 Augustana College Office of the President records and interfiled in the Augustana College Quasquicentennial series because these materials were not created by the Office of the President. The blue ribbon commemorating the 50th Anniversary of Augustana College, 1910 and the correspondence on Ladies Tea for the Centennial Synod Convention, 1960 were separated from the former MSS 170 Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church collection and interfiled in the Augustana College 50th Anniversary Jubilee series and the Augustana College Centennial series. The materials from the Sesquicentennial Anniversary of Augustana College were collected by Special Collections staff throughout the course of the year-long celebration. In 2011, a variety of anniversaries and celebrations materials were accessioned into MSS 179 during cleaning and reorganizing in Special Collections. The two Registers of Delegates and Visitors were found in unprocessed materials in Special Collections in January 2012 and added to the collection.