Special Collections, UNR Libraries

05/27/2026

State fairs include all kinds of activities and displays, not only agricultural! This is a photo of the Mackay School of Mines exhibit at the State Fair in Fallon in autumn 1947 - not totally sure what they’re exhibiting, though. any insights?

Item number UNRA-P578-1.

05/26/2026

Today the Libraries remembers and celebrates the life of Robert Leonard Reid who recently passed away.

Reid was a friend of the Libraries and was a member of the Nevada Writers Hall of fame. He was the 2018 Inductee and had previously been awarded the Silver Pen in 2009.

To read more about Reid's connection to the Libraries and the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame, click the following link: https://www.unr.edu/nevada-today/news/2018/robert-leonard-reid

05/26/2026

For university archives, student life is one of the hardest things to document - it tends to run about two or three generations behind, as unfortunately we tend to receive these materials when someone has downsized a home or passed away. That makes every little bit more exciting!

05/21/2026

It’s a bit hard to see, but we appreciate having this image that shows a display of textile “fancy work” at the 22nd Nevada State Fair, held in Fallon in September 1916. 110 years ago, in the middle of WWI! Photo by John R. Post, USRS. UNRS-P2008-18-286

05/13/2026

We’re pretty excited about the return of the full state fair next month! This is what the fairgrounds looked like in the late 1930s. More images to come over the next few weeks, to whet everyone’s appetite for the festivities! Photo ID: UNRS-P2601

05/11/2026

We’re in the middle of refreshing our exhibit supplies and improving the display infrastructure, thanks to a grant from and ! Today our slick new frames arrived in three of the largest cardboard boxes any of us have seen before (archivist for scale) and we’re working on getting them unloaded and moved to their new storage area, ready for the Staff Favorites exhibit coming in August. Hurrah for grant support and archives exhibits!

04/30/2026

Have you been to see our newest exhibit yet? “Sagebrush Scribblers: Editorial Cartoons in the Student Newspaper” is on display on the third floor of the Knowledge Center until the end of July. It shows the evolution of cartooning in between 1895 and 1995, from small illustrations to full-blown political cartoons. Student cartoonists took on sports, final exams, Watergate, military service, predatory credit card companies, and so much more. This exhibit also celebrates the recent digitization of the complete back catalog of the Sagebrush, which can be found in our digital archives - no logins required! Come visit the exhibit and enjoy exploring the campus newspaper going all the way back to 1893.

04/21/2026

It's National Library Week! What brings you library joy?

Send a message to learn more

04/16/2026

University of Nevada students painted an "N" on Peavine to celebrate a track meet against Santa Clara. It's still there more than a century later.

04/15/2026

A few weeks ago, Reno lost artist Ruth Hilts at age 102. Among the papers and artwork she generously gave to the archives is this painting, “Nevada Earth Colors.” She collected minerals from around the state to grind into pigments, which she used to paint this image of the landscape she loved. The painting and the set minerals prepared for making paints are always greeted with curiosity and enthusiasm by our students.

Special Collections and University Archives extends condolences to the family and friends of Ruth Hilts at this time, and once again wishes to express appreciation for the materials placed in our care.