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.
This blog may contain archived web content. This blog may link to catalog records which no longer exist as of a software change in 2026.
If you’re a fan of soccer in general or Team Algeria in particular, be sure to stop by Spencer Research Library this summer and check out our small exhibit in honor of this year’s FIFA World Cup.
A photograph of the Baker University soccer team in Baldwin City, Kansas, 1911. Leonard Hollmann Photograph Collection. Call Number: RH PH 536. Click image to enlarge.
One case features materials documenting the history of soccer locally and internationally. For example, Matthew Concanen’s 1721 work A Match at Foot-Ball; Or the Irish Champions: A Mock-Heroick Poem, in Three Canto’s (Call Number: B519) is a very early account of “foot-ball,” a precursor to modern Association Football (soccer), Rugby, and Gaelic Football, which were not codified separately until the mid-1800s.
The other case in this display highlights items about the history of Algeria, whose national soccer team is based in Lawrence during the tournament. The exhibited items span more than four centuries and reveal both European and Algerian perspectives toward the North African country.
An illustration of the Algerian capital Algiers in Description de l’Afrique [Description of Africa] by Olfert Dapper, 1686. Heavily defended under Ottoman rule during the 1500s and 1600s, Algiers was protected by the series of fortifications, walls, and gates seen in this image. Call Number: Summerfield E1118. Click image to enlarge.
Each week we’ll be posting a photograph from University Archives that shows a scene from KU’s past. We’ve also scanned more than 34,800 images from KU’s University Archives and made them available online; be sure to check them out!
Did you know that today is National High Five Day? This is a particularly good year to celebrate, as a 2014 medical study found that high fives (and fist bumps) spread fewer germs than handshakes, according to Wikipedia.
Baby Jay high-fiving a young soccer play, 1996. University Archives Photos. Call Number: RG 0/25 1996 Prints: University General: Jayhawk mascot, dolls, etc (Photos). Click image to enlarge (redirect to Spencer’s digital collections).
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