The Walls Speak: Talk to explore history of campus buildings

  • Author By Rachel Hatch
  • October 12, 2017
painting of Old Main surrounded by smaller houses
Old Main was the first building on the campus of Illinois State Normal University. Then called the Administration Building, all aspects of campus life - including classes, administration, and even a museum - were contained in this grand building on the prairie.
April Anderson smiling

April Anderson

Illinois State University Archivist April Karlene Anderson will explore the stories behind the brick and mortar with the talk The Walls Speak: Telling ISU’s Story Through its Campus Buildings at 3 p.m. Friday, October 20, on the third floor of Milner Library. The event is free and open to the public.

The talk will highlight a new exhibit of the same name at the library. Running through December 16, the exhibit in the second floor vestibule is a companion for the new book in the Arcadia Publishing’s The History Series, Illinois State University that draws from the University archives. Read more about the book.

The exhibit will feature historic artifacts from buildings showcased in the book as well as a “first look” at some of the book’s photographs and stories. Anderson will recount her work choosing from the hundreds of thousands of images contained in the Dr. JoAnn Rayfield Archives at Illinois State University. “Narrowing it down to 200 images was tough,” said Anderson. “It’s like choosing which of your children is your favorite.”

For additional information about the book, exhibit, or talk, contact Anderson at (309) 438-3546 or archives@ilstu.edu.

Units

Milner Library