| Union College History |
| In its more than two hundred years of existence Union College has played a significant part in the history of American higher education. Many of the people associated with the College have left its walls and gone on to play important roles in American life and society. Anyone interested in researching some aspect of Union's history, or the history of one of its alumni, faculty, or administration, is encouraged to make use of the various resources on Union's history located in Schaffer Library.
Preliminary research on a Union history topic can be done by consulting the online catalog and the card catalog (located in the basement of the Library) under various subject headings and subheadings associated with the phrase "Union College." A subject search of the online catalog using the term "Union College" will produce several screens worth of subheadings connected to the College.
A search of the card catalog will produce other subheadings pertaining to Union. Some older works about the College may only be located by searching the card catalog. A single narrative history of Union, from its founding in 1795 to the present day, does not yet exist. There are several books which cover selected parts of the College story: Eliphalet Nott by Codman Hislop (1971), Union College, An Unfinished History by Dixon Ryan Fox (1945), In Order to Form a More Perfect Union by Samuel Fortenbaugh (1978), Perseverance Conquers Much (1990), and Thirty Years in the Life of a College by C. William Huntley (1985). The Union College student newspaper Concordiensis which began publishing in 1877 is also an excellent source of information about Union. Many materials associated with the College's history are found in the Special Collections department located on the third floor of Schaffer Library. This area includes the College Archives which date from the late eighteenth century to the present day. Conversation with a staff member in this department or with one of the reference librarians at the Reference Desk on the first floor can provide information on the topic and suggestions for further research. |
