Welcome to the Kenneth Spencer Research Library blog! As the special collections and archives library at the University of Kansas, Spencer is home to remarkable and diverse collections of rare and unique items. Explore the blog to learn about the work we do and the materials we collect.
Check the blog each Friday for a new “That’s Distinctive!” post. I created the series because I genuinely believe there is something in our collections for everyone, whether you’re writing a paper or just want to have a look. “That’s Distinctive!” will provide a more lighthearted glimpse into the diverse and unique materials at Spencer – including items that many people may not realize the library holds. If you have suggested topics for a future item feature or questions about the collections, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page.
This week on That’s Distinctive! I am sharing Uncle Henry’s Letters to the Farm Boy (1897) by Henry Wallace. Wallace (1836-1916) was born and raised on a farm in Pennsylvania. He spent much of his life on the farm before becoming a writer. By the time of his death, Wallace had written a total of six books. The University of Iowa Special Collections Department houses a collection of Henry Wallace’s papers including some diaries.
Each chapter of Uncle Henry’s Letters to the Farm Boy addresses a different thing a farm boy might encounter throughout his life. The chapters include “the farm boy and his father,” “the farm boy and his future business,” and “the farm boy and his education” (all shown below). The book at Spencer is a second edition printing and is signed by Henry Wallace himself.
I found this book merely by coincidence. I stumbled upon it one day while walking through the stacks. I was curious to see if the title was as literal as it seemed, and it was. I always find books like this fascinating because it shows a glimpse into what life was like back then.
The front cover of – and selected pages from – Uncle Henry’s Letters to the Farm Boy by Henry Wallace, 1897. Call Number: RH B2381. Click images to enlarge.
Happy Galentine’s Day, everyone! Valentine’s Day, while perhaps more well-known and vastly more commercially successful, is not the only holiday in February that deserves some love. And if you ignore Groundhog Day, the Lunar New Year, Super Bowl Sunday, and Mardi Gras, you’ll finally land on one of our favorite holidays of the year: Galentine’s Day! Originally introduced by hit television show Parks and Recreation in 2010, February 13th is a day dedicated to celebrating sisterhoods across all genders and ages. Dozens of you may be wondering how to celebrate this historic day. It can be a lot of pressure to find the time (and money) to spend quality time with friends. There are only so many hours in a day to make your friends feel appreciated, after all!
Fortunately, we here at the Spencer Research Library have combed through our Digital Collections and curated a list of our top ten ideas to help make your Galentine’s Day historic! Gather your closest friends and try out these fun (and inexpensive) activities.
1.) Teach a cooking class together.
Nothing ages finer than friendship, and what “butter” way to show how “fondue” are than to make something delicious to share with one another! Let’s not “mince” words. You “knead” to show how well you “jell” together!
“4H Clubs – Baking demonstration – Gloria Ousdahl (left) and Mary Miller,” 1956. Lawrence Journal-World Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH LJW, Box 9, Folder 1, Item 212. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
2.) Enjoy the nice weather with an outdoor activity.
With the weather so nice, why don’t you “rope” some of your closest friends into a fun outdoor activity? “Jump” into the spring-like weather and keep your lines from getting crossed because friendship is not something to “skip” out on!
“Girls playing jumprope,” undated [circa 1900]. Leavenworth Public Library Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH 72, Box 2, Folder 168. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
3.) Serenade one another.
Why not express to your friends how much they mean to you through the transcendent power of music? Whether you throw on a classic or compose a new, original tune, dedicating a song to a friend can be the perfect way to keep your friendship harmonious.
“Anita Burney[?] and unidentified woman,” undated [circa 1950]. L. K. Hughes Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH 506, Box 19, Folder 5. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
4.) Play a rousing game of cards.
What’s wrong with a little competition every now and again? If you and your besties prefer a quieter night out of the spotlight, a game night can be an excellent way for everyone to be dealt a good hand.
“Portrait of King sisters playing cards,” 1900. Joseph Judd Pennell Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH Pennell, Print 586, Box 16, Pennell Number 635C. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
5.) Spill the tea.
With good tea and conversation, you’ve got any get-together in the bag. Everyone could use some time to “steep” into someone else’s business and get that good-natured tea. Remember: sharing tidbits with friends helps you all “blend!”
“Women’s club meeting,” undated [circa 1890]. Artificial Non-Kansas Photographs Collection. Call number: RH PH 539, Box 5b, Folder 21 (previously RH PH P1017). Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
6.) Design new outfits for one another.
When celebrating the ties that bind, gather a group of friends to create a new wardrobe together! Show how at ease you are with one another by knowing all your style quirks and colors. Friendship will never have felt so seamless, and you can count on being anchored for life!
“Haskell – Dorothy Osceola, Seminole, hopes to become dress designer,” 1957. Lawrence Journal-World Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH LJW, Box 11, Folder 15, Item 205. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
7.) Hold a costume party.
What better way to show how authentic your friendship is than by pretending to be other people? Show new sides of yourself to old friends in a themed extravaganza celebrating famous friendships throughout history!
“Group of women in costumes at Lulu Stanely party,” 1907. Joseph Judd Pennell Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH Pennell, Print 1825, Box 40, Pennell Number 1343F. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
8.) Hold a sports tournament.
Take time out from your day-to-day to place your friendships front and center. It would be foul to leave your friends on the sidelines, so why don’t you call them in to assist you with a sports tournament? Just a little free throw-away idea for you and yours!
“Sophomore girls basketball team,” 1913. Joseph Judd Pennell Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH Pennell, Print 2635, Box 56, Pennell Number 1400H. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
9.) Build a show pyramid.
If you’re looking for signs on how to clasp your friendships tight and provide that foundational base for your squad, cheer up because we have the ultimate friendship activity! Grip your friends tight together and prove to them all that this isn’t some sort of stunt but the real deal!
“LHS [Lawrence High School] girls’ sport show – pyramid (L to R) back row,” 1957. Lawrence Journal-World Photograph Collection. Call number: RH PH LJW, Box 11, Folder 12, Item 141. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
10.) Leave your life behind and take a trip.
If life is making it hard for you and your friends to “coupe,” don’t leave each other in “suspension” and shift your perspective with a trip! You’ll find your spirits starting to lift as you leave that exhaust behind and steer you and your friends into new adventures.
A group of women next to a train, undated [circa 1950] Duke D’Ambra Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH 69. Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
Check the blog each Friday for a new “That’s Distinctive!” post. I created the series because I genuinely believe there is something in our collections for everyone, whether you’re writing a paper or just want to have a look. “That’s Distinctive!” will provide a more lighthearted glimpse into the diverse and unique materials at Spencer – including items that many people may not realize the library holds. If you have suggested topics for a future item feature or questions about the collections, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page.
This week on That’s Distinctive! I share a scrapbook of Kansas news items. Originally a copy of Tommy Trot’s Visit to Santa Claus by Thomas Nelson Page (1908), the book is pasted with various news articles from the early 1900s. Created by Margaret Thomas Henderson, the 91-page scrapbook houses news clippings about topics such as the University of Kansas, the Lawrence community, the history of Kansas, and notable people from the time.
Margaret Thomas Henderson was born in Parsons, Kansas, in 1880. According to the finding aid for the scrapbook, she “enrolled at the University of Kansas in 1898, graduating Phi Beta Kappa with a liberal arts degree in 1905.” Margaret gifted the book to the library in 1952, just two years before she passed.
The front cover of – and selected pages from – Margaret Thompson Henderson’s Kansas scrapbook, circa 1908-1924. Call Number: RH MS C90. Click image to enlarges.
I developed Spencer’s current short-term exhibit to compliment the research I conducted about Clinton Lake and the Wakarusa Museum as an undergraduate student. While writing my thesis paper last year, I used a lot of the materials featured in this exhibit as primary sources. I hope this blog post will elaborate more on the complex history of Clinton Lake and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from a community perspective.
A project brochure and map of Clinton Dam and Lake including information about costs, benefits, and construction, published by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 1972. Papers of Carol Buhler Francis. Call Number: RH MS 1473. Click image to enlarge.
Originally passed by Congress in 1917, the Flood Control Act directed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin evaluating issues of flood control along tributaries of the Mississippi River. This included the longest tributary of the Mississippi River: the Missouri River, which feeds the Kansas (Kaw) River. On July 13, 1951, after a series of storms produced up to 16 inches of rain, the Kaw spilled over its banks. More than 115 cities along its path in eastern Kansas – most notably Topeka, Lawrence, and Kansas City – were flooded. In Lawrence, the river crested at 29.90 feet (11 feet above flood stage). The flood also washed out 1 million acres of land and nearly 10,000 farms. For many local community members, the Flood of 1951 represented a once-in-a-lifetime disaster. The flood forced 85,000 people to abandon their homes and amassed $760 million in damages (nearly $5 billion today).
A submerged farm on the outskirts of North Lawrence, 1951. Photograph taken by the U.S. Navy. Call Number: RH PH 172. Click image to enlarge.
In response, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a network of levees and reservoirs to prevent future flooding. The Flood Control Act of 1962 authorized funding to dam the Wakarusa River, a major tributary of the Kaw, and build Clinton Lake. In addition to flood control, Clinton Lake would also supply the city of Lawrence with water and provide a source of recreation for locals and tourists alike. Located southwest of Lawrence, Clinton Lake ushered in an era of excitement and uncertainty for the people of Douglas County. Despite protests from many Wakarusa River Valley citizens, the Corps of Engineers began buying land as early as 1968, and construction of the dam started in 1972.
An informational brochure about Clinton Lake including a map of surrounding recreational activities and campsites, published by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, undated. Papers of Carol Buhler Francis. Call Number: RH MS 1473. Click image to enlarge.
Swift action on behalf of the Corps of Engineers prompted local residents of the Wakarusa region to form the Clinton Lake Landowner’s Association, which advocated for the landownership rights of Wakarusa River Valley citizens. According to Martha Parker, a lifetime resident of Clinton and an active community member, “they did nothing but lie to you. We used to have a saying, ‘How can you tell a Corps man is lying? When his lips start moving.'” An auxiliary group, the Clinton Lake Historical Society (or CLHS) was formed alongside the Landowner’s Association with the goal of gathering and preserving the region’s history, which many feared would be lost forever beneath the lake. Many local community members held feelings of great anxiety about the proposed construction of Clinton Lake. This anxiety was not only rooted in an intense fear of the unknown, which often accompanies forced displacement, but the idea that the disappearance of regional history meant the erasure of one’s personal identity. “People just had no idea what was about to happen to them,” Parker explained. “Tons of people were selling all their belongings, their land, everything. I kept telling folks, don’t sell. Nobody listened.” With the support of the Landowner’s Association and the CLHS, Parker went on to establish the Clinton Lake Museum, known today as the Wakarusa River Valley Heritage Museum.
A Kansas City Star political cartoon about the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 1975. Papers of Carol Buhler Francis. Call Number: RH MS 1473. Click image to enlarge.
A Lawrence Journal-World article reporting on the Clinton Lake Museum, 1983. Papers of Carol Buhler Francis. Call Number: RH MS 1473. Click image to enlarge.
However, it is important to remember that Clinton Lake displaced more than just rural residents of the Wakarusa River Valley. The process of artificial lake building results in the forced displacement and subsequent migration of different groups of peoples at different moments in time. Yet this process cannot be viewed from a static perspective. Dispossession is not merely an event; it is a process that continues long after initial physical removal. Beginning in the 1800s, Native American nations located within the Wakarusa River Valley were removed from their federally promised lands in order to make room for white settlers. This included the Kaw Nation (whose ancestral homelands included the river valley) along with tribes relocated from the East (namely the Shawnee and Delaware). Therefore, Clinton Lake serves as a force of continuous dispossession. Flooding the land removes any future opportunity for communities, both Native and non-Native, to return to their homes and restore their sense of historical, cultural, and spiritual connection to that place.
This exhibit is free and open to the public in the North Gallery through February 28th.
Claire Cox Public Services Student Assistant KU Graduate Student in History
Check the blog each Friday for a new “That’s Distinctive!” post. I created the series because I genuinely believe there is something in our collections for everyone, whether you’re writing a paper or just want to have a look. “That’s Distinctive!” will provide a more lighthearted glimpse into the diverse and unique materials at Spencer – including items that many people may not realize the library holds. If you have suggested topics for a future item feature or questions about the collections, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this page.
This week on That’s Distinctive! I am sharing a glimpse into the lives of early pioneer homesteaders in Kansas. Coming from the R.H. Gandivan and R. Hugobook collection are photos (1883-1884) of early pioneers in front of their homes in Kansas. The collection consists of 24 photos from around the state. According to the finding aid, “the photographs depict pioneer families and their homesteads in the following Kansas counties: Clay, Jewell, McPherson, Mitchell, Ottawa, and Saline. Subjects include early pioneer houses and farmsteads, family groups, landscapes, and individual portraits.”
An entry in the Kansas Historical Society’s Kansapedia notes that “after the Civil War and before 1890 the population of Kansas increased by the greatest amount in its history. More than one million people streamed into Kansas seeking a new life on the frontier…Free and cheap land provided by the Homestead Act and the railroads attracted many settlers.” The Homestead Act was passed in 1862. Under its provisions, “settlers could claim 160 acres of public land. They paid a small filing fee and then had two options for getting title to the land…The Homestead Act led to the distribution of 80 million acres of public land by 1900.”
Houses in the late nineteenth century came in many shapes and sizes. The Old House Archives provide an idea of just how vast the design range was (though many have been updated as time goes on). Architectural Observer provides a brief glimpse into an empty late nineteenth century farmhouse.
A pioneer family and their farmstead in Mitchell County, Kansas, 1884. R.H. Gandiven and R. Hugoboom Photographs. Call Number: RH PH 547(f). Click image to enlarge.
A pioneer family and their farmstead in Mitchell County, Kansas, 1884. A note on the back of the photo reads “A little farm well tilled A house well filled A little wife well willed Mitchell ct Kansas, 1884.” R.H. Gandiven and R. Hugoboom Photographs. Call Number: RH PH 547(f). Click image to enlarge.
A family in Ottawa County, Kansas, 1884. R.H. Gandiven and R. Hugoboom Photographs. Call Number: RH PH 547(f). Click image to enlarge.
A common school in McPherson County, Kansas, 1884. R.H. Gandiven and R. Hugoboom Photographs. Call Number: RH PH 547(f). Click image to enlarge.
If you would like a glimpse into the life of a Kansan in the late 1800s, check out our earlier post featuring a Kansas farmer’s diary from 1896 or this post about letters and diaries of Kansas women in the 1860s. The library also houses the diary of Maude Egbert (a Kansas farm wife during the 1940s) and many others from throughout history.
