On September 2, 1982, at a meeting of the Chancellor's Cabinet, a proposed library archival policy was discussed and approval was given for the library to begin "collecting the more important documents that are significant to the history of [the campus]." Four individuals — Pauline Hunsberger, Larry Griffin, Denise Buhr, and Kelley Brenneman — have managed the archives since then.
The Purdue University Fort Wayne Archives' mission is to preserve and make accessible materials of enduring value that document the history, culture, scholarship, advancements, and achievements of the university's faculty, staff, and students. The collection holds books, documents, photographs, and other items of importance to Purdue University Fort Wayne, Indiana University Fort Wayne, and Indiana-Purdue University Fort Wayne.
The physical collection is housed in Helmke Library and may be accessed by appointment only. Please email archives@pfw.edu to schedule an appointment. To access the digital collections please visit mDON Digital Collections.
mDON includes a wide variety of campus-related primary source material as well as archival collections developed in cooperation with community partners. If you have questions about the digital archives, please contact mDON@pfw.edu.
The university encyclopedia was the brainchild of former archivist Larry Griffin in the early 2000s. It contains "snippets" of information about the people, places, events, and other items relevant to Purdue University Fort Wayne and its history, including its predecessors — Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, the Indiana University Center, and the Purdue Center. Currently the digital encyclopedia is accessible only on campus. It will be publicly accessible after library staff update its contents.
