Augustana College Special Collections local history collection

The Augustana College Special Collections local history collection, 1713-2017 and undated, is organized into twelve series.

Realia, 1896-1990 and undated, includes buttons, tokens, matchbooks, and other objects related to the Quad Cities, including commemorative items for events and anniversaries, political and World War I campaign buttons, and advertising material for local business and organizations.

Postcards, 1895-1993 and undated, consists of postcards depicting local scenery, buildings, and the Mississippi River, including Augustana College scenes.

Newspapers and Magazines, 1891-2000 and undated, includes newspapers, newsletters, magazines, and other periodicals published by local groups or organizations. Many of these newspapers, such as Slowfish, Challenge, and New Times, were published by activists, political organizers, or marginalized groups in the Quad Cities as a form of protest and political expression.

Subject Files, 1860s-2000s and undated, consists of subject files on various topics of local interest.

Maps and directory information, 1837-1994 and undated, contains Illinois and Iowa state maps, maps of individual counties and cities in Illinois and Iowa, telephone directories, and other directory information for the Quad Cities region.

Sheet Music, 1864-1985 and undated, contains various pieces of locally and culturally significant sheet music.

Discrete manuscripts, 1713-1920 and undated, contains numerous small manuscript collections, printed material, and other items for which no creator or provenance information could be identified.

City of Rock Island publications, 1884-1996 and undated, primarily consists of annual reports issued by various Rock Island committees and neighborhood planning documents.

Local church publications, 1886-1998 and undated, contains material related to churches in the greater Quad Cities area.

Local school publications, 1858-1965 and undated, contains printed material related to local secondary schools and colleges.

Ephemera, circa 1860s-2017 and undated, is the largest series in the collection. The materials in this series are almost exclusively ephemeral in nature and primarily serve to document local businesses, organizations, and groups.

The final series in the collection, audiovisual recordings and computer files, 1906-2010 and undated, contains recordings in a variety of formats, including thirteen sound recordings on transcription discs primarily consisting of interviews with Augustana College faculty members and leaders of the Augustana Synod and various pieces of music, presumably performed by Augustana College ensembles. This series also includes recordings of the proceedings of the 1948 Swedish Pioneer Centennial held in Chicago, Illinois.