Adopt a Collection
Adopt a Collection: Support South Dakota’s Documentary Heritage
Protect a piece of South Dakota history through the Adopt a Collection initiative at South Dakota State University Archives and Special Collections.
The collections housed in the SDSU Archives chronicle the scholarly and cultural landscape of the university and the region. At the SDSU Archives, we work diligently to preserve the physical materials entrusted to us and to expand access to the university’s body of research through digitization efforts.
The Adopt a Collection program invites friends and supporters to meaningfully contribute to conservation efforts. Each project featured below offers a targeted opportunity to:
- Uphold collections for future generations through archival processing and preservation.
- Increase the number of digital research resources available to a global audience.
- Support student assistant positions that will aid in this important work.
Donors will be acknowledged with an adoption certificate, an informational sheet about the item and a digital bookplate on our website.
To adopt a collection, click the Adopt This Collection link at the end of your selected collection’s description. If you would like to adopt in honor or memory of someone, please include this in the comments box of the online donation form.
For additional information, please email the SDSU Archives or call 605-688-5094.
Help us safeguard and share South Dakota’s unique history by adopting a collection. We truly value your generosity and support of the SDSU Archives and Special Collections!
Adoptable Collections
The Sen. Thomas A. Daschle Career Papers include thousands of items from his distinguished 26-year public service career in the U.S. House and Senate.
We are asking for your help to preserve and digitize the 16mm films documenting Senator Daschle's early career in the U.S. Congress. Your support will fund professional, high-resolution scanning of these films, preserving this important historical footage and making it accessible online.
Goal: $5,000
Any amount will be greatly appreciated.
The Collegian student newspaper is a vital record of campus life, documenting student voices, activities, events and experiences across generations.
Thank you to everyone who has supported this project! With your help, we have made tremendous progress, and only 20 years remain to be digitized and made accessible online.
Your contribution will support student assistants who scan, describe and upload these historic newspapers.
Adopt a year: $40 per year
Adopt a decade: $400 per decade
Complete the collection: $800
Any amount will be greatly appreciated.
The Prairie Striders Running Club Library specializes in items related to running. Bob Bartling, a founding member of the Prairie Striders Running Club, spent countless hours meticulously indexing race results, athlete profiles and running news.
Your support will fund student assistants to complete the transcription of his index cards into a searchable database and continue the indexing Bartling began.
Goal: $1,000 for one semester of student work
Every contribution, no matter the amount, will help continue Bartling's legacy and make his remarkable work more accessible.
The South Dakota Community Cookbook Collection preserves more than recipes; it captures the culinary traditions, local organizations, family histories and community life of South Dakotans.
Your support will help us acquire and preserve additional cookbooks from West River communities, filling regional gaps in the collection and creating a more complete record of the state’s communities and heritage.
Goal: $1,000 for acquisition, preservation and outreach
Any amount will be greatly appreciated.
The Jim Koch Amateur Wrestling Collection documents the history of amateur wrestling in South Dakota with special emphasis on SDSU.
Your support will fund a student assistant to update SDSU wrestling data and index past issues of Amateur Wrestling News, building on Bob Bartling’s foundational work and making decades of wrestling history easier to discover.
Goal: $1,000 for one semester of student work
The contains a rich photographic record of life in Brookings dating back to 1886, capturing the people, places, events and moments that tell the story of the community.
Your support will fund a student assistant to digitize, describe and upload these historic photographs to our digital collections, making them more accessible while preserving Brookings’ history for future generations.
Goal: $1,000 for one semester of student work
Every contribution, no matter the amount, will help preserve and share Brookings’ history.
The Sen. Thomas A. Daschle Congressional Papers include thousands of items from his distinguished 26-year public service career in the U.S. House and Senate.
Your support will fund a student assistant to digitize and describe materials documenting the 1980s Farm Crisis and Farm Bills, preserving and making available documents from an important period in South Dakota's agricultural and political history.
Goal: $1,000 to support one semester of student work
Every contribution will help preserve and provide access to this important chapter in South Dakota history.
Printed in the 17th century, "" is a significant travel narrative documenting the author’s journey through the Middle East and India. This three-volume set is part of the Vera Way Marghab Rare Book Collection and is the only complete set of this edition known to exist in the United States.
Your support will provide custom-made preservation boxes to protect these fragile volumes and help ensure their long-term preservation.
Goal: $900 ($300 to preserve each volume)
