University Archives

The University Archives collects, preserves, and provides access to the historical records of Portland State from its beginnings as Vanport Extension Center to the present day.  The archives includes documents, correspondence, publications, program materials, photographs, moving images, and ephemera from administrative departments, academic units, student organizations, and faculty and staff.

The resources linked below represent a partial list of University Archives materials.  Please contact the University Archivist for more information.

Collections of Portland State University administrative and departmental records, papers, interviews, and projects.

The Digital Gallery features images from the University Archives photograph collection documenting Portland State’s rich history. The image collections, highlighting campus buildings and events, student life, and portraits of faculty and staff, can be searched and browsed by dates and keywords. Users can assemble their own collections from the Gallery, email stable URLs, and download JPGs for research or educational use.

Digital transfers of original recordings of speeches, performances, and panels at Portland State University between 1958-1979.

From 1946 until 1995, Portland State students, faculty, and staff produced the Viking annuals. The publication began as a traditional school yearbook, with photographs of college-sponsored events, student groups, and portraits of the graduating class, and evolved into a creative expression of life on and around the downtown campus in writing and images. The Viking was published from 1946-47 until 1977-78 and then resumed for six more years in 1989-90.

A joint project of the Retirement Association of Portland State (RAPS) and Portland State Library University Archives, Remembering Portland State preserves and shares the unique voices and moments that have helped define our university community. Offerings include essays, articles, remembrances, oral histories, and commentaries intended to enhance and deepen our collective historical record.

This site contains information and resources about the history of the copper beech tree outside the Portland State University Library and the Library’s unique design. The curved building encircles the tree, which was planted in approximately 1890. This landmark tree was designated by the Portland City Council as a City of Portland Heritage Tree in 1995 and is a focal point of Portland State’s history and presence on the Park Blocks.

The University Archives at the Portland State University Library is home to historical records documenting Portland State’s beginning as the Vanport Extension Center (VEC).  Students in a public history seminar taught by Dr. Bill Lang during the spring of 2010 drew upon these records to curate and design this digital exhibit, which highlights life on the Vanport campus from its inception in 1946 to its devastation in the flood of 1948.