St. Olaf College News Bureau image collection

This collection, created by the St. Olaf College News Bureau, consists of 41 volumes dating from 1960 to 1995 and 2004. It features various subjects, including the Northfield, Minnesota, area and the St. Olaf College campus, community members, visitors, academics, educational programming, extracurriculars, and events.

The News Bureau, also known as the Publicity Bureau, was a department at St. Olaf College created in 1934 or 1935 to cover college activities in connection with the Manitou Messenger. Similar departments were established, including Publications, the Public Relations Office in 1948, and the Office of Information Services in 1966. 1989, the Office of Public Relations and the Office of Information Services merged.

The directors of the News Bureau were Peter Laugen, Charles W. Gibeaut, Robert (Bob) Phelps, Dan Jorgenson, and Mike Cooper. Frederick Gonnerman was the Director of Information Services. Public Relations directors include David Johnson, Jack Laugen, Donald Sahling, Dan Jorgenson, and Nancy Moe, the Director of Sports Information. In the Publications department, the directors were Frederick Gonnerman and Nancy Ashmore, along with Associate Director Don Bratland.

Researchers should note that this information is an incomplete history of the News Bureau, providing only a base from which to evaluate this collection. Information was gathered from the Manitou Messenger, St. Olaf Bulletin, St. Olaf College course catalogs, St. Olaf Magazine, The Viking yearbooks, and an obituary.

This collection was created by the St. Olaf College News Bureau, categorizing material by date (from 1960 to 1995), negative sheet numbers (from 1 to 4289 and 1 to 343), and numbers assigned to the folders by the compiler with some material presumably in the St. Olaf College general photograph collection. The collection mainly consists of negatives, contact sheets, and slides but also contains other materials, such as documents, color transparencies, and handwritten notes. Some images are in multiple records. Dating from 1960 to 1995 and 2004, most materials were created at St. Olaf College or the local area, although some national and international materials are also present. Main topics include the Northfield, Minnesota, area and the St. Olaf College campus, community members, visitors, academics, educational programming, extracurriculars, and events. Please be advised that the materials included in this collection reflect the historical context and culture of the time they were created. As a result, some of the content may be outdated or considered offensive by modern standards. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the St. Olaf College Archives but is available in its original form to facilitate research.