Colorado School of Mines Archive

Mines' Archive contains publications, photographs, artifacts, newspaper clippings and other materials that tell the story of the School's rich history.

Our collections have materials from the beginnings of the School of Mines to images created just this year--it doesn't have to be "old" to tell Mines' story.

Want to be a part of history? Want to tell your story or the story of your organization? Share by donating your Mines items!

Colorado School of Mines' history reflects a larger, changing world through its publications, historical records, and primary source materials. Topics to explore include:

• Student organizations and the role they play on campus
• Athletics in Colorado institutions of higher education
• Women in engineering
• Environmentalism and the mineral industries
• Education and educators
• Student humor
• Diversity and the presence of under-represented groups in university and professional life
• War and the military in campus life
• How students choose to depict themselves
• Art and culture in the Mines community
• Technology and how it shapes education

When using Archive materials, consider:

What is the original purpose of the item? What was the intended audience?

What don't you see? What viewpoints aren't represented? When do societal concerns -- for example the environment, economics, global conflicts, women students' influence -- appear?

What would be "normal" for the time? What were the attitudes of that period? That doesn't make something right or wrong, but it helps frame events peoples' reactions. 

How did School publications evolve? For example, the Prospector yearbook began in 1912--How did it change with the times? Why?