Welcome to Reed College Special Collections and Archives primary source sets!
Each set focuses on a particular historical period, event, or topic, and contains primary sources from Reed’s college archives, manuscript collections, and rare book collection.
Primary sources are documents, artifacts, or materials created by a first-hand witness or someone with close proximity to an historical event. Primary sources provide tangible evidence of past events and can help create a deeper understanding of history.
You can access any of the items referenced in the set during our open hours. Please see the Special Collections and Archives homepage for more information about hours and location.
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The Columbia River: Its Tributaries, Its Confluences, and Its ControversiesThis set centers the largest river in the Pacific Northwest: the 1,243 mile long Columbia River. -
Letterforms and Calligraphy at Reed College and BeyondThe materials included in this set showcase a variety of handwriting styles, with a particular focus on the history of calligraphy and letterforms at Reed College. -
Historical Audio-Visual Materials In BriefAn overview of archival audio, photographic, and motion picture formats. -
Changing Times and Changing CuisinesThis set explores food—its changes and its continuities—as it morphed over time in Portland and at Reed. -
Data and Visual RepresentationsThe resources included in this primary source set explore data, numbers, and visual representations in all their glory, from academic studies to math notes.