Special Collections in 2025: 1st Quarterly Review

The purpose of The Compass Rose is to raise awareness of Special Collections' resources and to foster the use of these resources. The blog series also reports significant new programs, initiatives, and acquisitions of Special Collections. 

This is the newest in an ongoing series spotlighting new acquisitions and reproductions of our content. For more on our previous featured material, read our previously published Quarterly Review blogs.

Special Collections is continually acquiring new materials and image reproductions of items from our collections are regularly used in new publications and by media outlets. This post reviews where and how materials from our collections are being used around the world in January, February, and March of 2025.

This quarter, Special Collections hosted 1,357 visitors and 72 of those visitors were here to conduct research in our collections, with 51 new researchers! Over 400 unique archival collections, books, and maps were pulled for research this quarter, with researchers showing strong interest in the Honduran Archival Documents on microfilm, and general university history--particularly the University Reference Files, UTA presidents' files, Greek Life, and the Movin’ Mavs Records.

Acquisitions of Archival Materials

David Finfrock Antarctica Collection

In December 2024, Special Collections acquired the personal materials from David Finfrock’s trip to Antarctica in 2002. Finfrock, a former Senior Meteorologist in DFW and current editor of the Texas Map Society’s publication, The Neatline, has had an interest in geography, and more specifically Antarctica, from a young age. He has previously donated hundreds of historical maps, postal stamps, and other ephemera related to Antarctica. This most recent archival donation adds more context to his personal connection with the southern continent. The David Finfrock Antarctica Exploration Collection (AR883) includes almost 100 kodak slide photographs, which have been scanned and will soon be available in UTA's Digital Archive, along with a typed diary detailing his journey in Antarctica day by day. 

UTA Baseball Uniform and Letterman Jacket

In February, Special Collections acquired a UTA baseball uniform and letterman's jacket worn by former student Gary Bearden during the 1973-1975 seasons. The items are the first artifacts in Special Collections related to UTA's baseball program. Bearden graduated from UTA in 1975 with a Bachelor of Arts and spent the next 30 years teaching history and coaching baseball and track in Arlington and Mansfield. 

Events

UTA Greek Life Community Center Opening

UTA Fraternity and Sorority Life celebrated the ribbon cutting to the opening of their new Greek Life Community Center on February 27! Special Collections brought materials to the event that covered the history of Greek Life at UTA from the 1940s to the present.

International Astrology Day Celebration

UTA Special Collections and the UTA Astrology Club celebrated the Spring Equinox and kicked off the Astrological New Year in style on March 20! Students and guests had the opportunity to explore and engage with Special Collections materials through tours of the Cosmic Cartography exhibit, coloring historical sign maps, and enjoying astrology bracelet making, giveaways, and Aries season horoscopes.

Mini-Exhibits

This quarter, UTA Special Collections staff curated three mini-exhibits, which are designed to highlight a specific topic or commemorate an event in history utilizing materials from our collections.

In February, we celebrated Valentine's Day in our "Love is in the Archives" mini-exhibit by showcasing items in our collection relating to expressions of friendship, affection, and romance through a variety of historical artifacts! This display featured poems, letters, postcards, sheet music, Valentine's Day cards, and photographs--each representing different kinds of love from within our collection materials.

Also in February, we commemorated the 178th anniversary of the Battle of Buena Vista with a mini-exhibit featuring materials from our robust U.S.–Mexico War Collection. The battle, which took place near Saltillo, Mexico on February 22-23, 1847, is unique in that both the U.S. and Mexico claimed victory, although neither side really gained anything. The mini-exhibit showcased materials like a hand-drawn map by Henry Benham of the U.S. Engineers, handwritten letters and diaries by soldiers who took part in the battle, a Mexican newspaper article claiming victory, and celebratory sheet music honoring General Zachary Taylor. 

In March, we celebrated Women's History Month in our "Women's Work: Visualizing 20th Century Women in the Archives" mini-exhibit! The idea of "Women's Work" came to life with a crocheted blanket-scarf that visitors could both see and touch. The materials represented in this mini-exhibit were just a snapshot of how UTA Special Collections represents women's history—in particular, which women's issues are covered and where we may need to focus our collecting efforts. "Women's Work" focused on four topics across the years 1900-1999: 1) Women who worked in "traditional" jobs; 2) Women who worked in "nontraditional" jobs; 3) Women who advocated for other women; and 4) Men who advocated for women. Items on display included books, photographs, and a political cartoon from our collections, in addition to a tactile element where visitors could interact with with data using the blanket-shawl.

Acquisitions of Printed Materials

Dianne Powell Donation 

Dianne Garrett Powell, a lifelong supporter of UTA Special Collections, passed away at the age of 81 on November 14, 2024. One of her final actions was to donate her personal map collection to the Virginia Garrett Cartographic History Library. This quarter, we acquired 55 of her favorite maps and prints that cover wide ranging time periods and geographic regions. Below are a few highlights: 

• Typus Orbis Terrarum, Abraham Ortelius, 1581
• Planisphere Terrestre Suivant les nouvelle Observations des Astronomes Dressee, Pieter van der Aa, 1713
• Mexico Regia et Celebris Hispaniae Novae Civitas; Cusco, Regni Peru in Novo Orbe, Georg Braun & Frans Hogenberg, 1572
• A New Map of the World from the Latest Observations, John Senex, 1721
• Novissima et Accuratissima Totius Americae Descriptio, Frederick De Wit, 1680
• Texas, Mexico, and part of the United States, J. Yeager, 1836 

A selection of these maps will be on display this summer, 2025. Stay tuned for more.

Maps of Africa, Antarctica

This quarter we received 12 new Africa maps from donor Jack Franke, and two new Antarctica maps from David Finfrock. These maps have been added to our growing collections related to these two geographic regions and will be used in future exhibits and UTA classes.  

Jack Franke Africa Maps 

• Novissima et Perfectissima Africae Descriptio, Carel Allard, 1696
• Afbeeldinge der Oude Waereld, Nicolaas Goetzee, 1749

• 

  Carte d'Afrique divisee en ses principaux etats, Jean Baptiste Louis Clouet, 1788

• L'Afrique, Nicholas De Fer, 1705
• Paskaart Van de Kust van Maroca Beginnende van Larache totl aan C. Cantin, Johannes Van Keulen, 1681
• Nieuwe Pascaert vande Kust van Maroca en Zanhaga, Johannes Van Keulen, 1681
• Iles Canaries et Madere, Philippe Vandermaelen, 1827
• Soudan Francais, Commandant P. Pollachi, 1938
• Oubangui-Chari Tchad, Commandant P. Pollachi, 1938
• Gabon et Moyen-Congo Politiques, Commandant P. Pollachi, 1938
• Haute Volta, Commandant P. Pollachi, 1938
• Territories du Sud Algerien, Commandant P. Pollachi, 1929 

David Finfrock Antarctica Maps 

• Kart van de Ontedekkingen gedaan in den Zuider Atlantischen Oceaan, James Cook, 1797
• Regioni Polari Paragonate Secondo Gli Ultimi Viaggi, Luigi Rossi, 1824 

SPCO Class Visits

Students from a variety of classes visit Special Collections to engage in experiential learning activities using our unique materials. This quarter, we hosted 46 class sessions from a variety of disciplines, including History, Art History, English, Non-profit Management, Disability Studies, Philosophy, Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies, Astronomy, Anthropology, and Biology.

Students from three sections of Dr. Ritu Khanduri’s Anthropology classes visited Special Collections to view materials relating to visual and material culture. During their visit, the students conducted a map analysis activity using cartographic materials from the Virginia Garrett Cartographic History Library. The activity, designed by Outreach & Instruction Archivist Evan Spencer and Cartographic Archivist Madeline Lowry, required students to identify cultural themes across maps made in different centuries by people from different cultural traditions and compare the ways each map engaged with the themes. 

Image Reproduction Highlights

Local News

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram collection, which came in increments to UTA Libraries from 1984 to 2022, is often used in a variety of news articles and columns published by the original donor, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. This quarter, the Star-Telegram used photographs from the collection for 8 stories: 

• "Attorney has advocated for equal justice for Latino people," by Richard J. Gonzales, January 4, 2025
• "Top 5 biggest snowfalls in North Texas history," by Brayden Garcia, January 8, 2025
• "Will Rogers' ranch in California destroyed by Palisades fire," by Matt Leclercq, January 9, 2025
• "Black woman outbid white men for stock show champion steer," by Sara Pezzoni, January 19, 2025
• "When a Texas school hung effigies to scare Black teens away, Davis led us all forward," by Bud Kennedy, February 21, 2025
• "Oliver J. Miller, the Big O, dies at the age of 54," by David Ammenheuser, March 12, 2025
• "Do Kennedy docs say anything about visit to Fort Worth?" by Matthew Adams, March 19, 2025
• "Legendary architecutre is on the market in North Texas," by Ella Gonzales, March 28, 2025

Photographs from the collection were also used in 2 photo features:

• "PHOTOS: Fort Worth's most memorable & historic snow storms," by Matt Leclercq, January 6, 2025
• "PHOTOS: Fort Worth's MLK march in 1986, first year of holiday," by Matt Leclercq, January 16, 2025

Other news outlets published the following stories using our collection materials: 

• Fort Worth Report article, "From mayor's office to Capitol Hill, Kay Granger blazed trail for Fort Worth politics," by David Montgomery, January 2, 2025; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• Lufkin Daily News article, "All Things Historical: The importance of Texas' first railroad," by Scott Sosebee, January 6, 2025; images used from the General Map Collection
• NBC 5 DFW video, "Fort Worth Public Market undergoes extensive restoration," February 7, 2025; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection and W. D. Smith Commercial Photography, Inc. Collection
• Fort Worth Report article, "Bob on Business: Tandy Leather sells Fort Worth headquarters, nails down space in Benbrook," by Bob Francis, February 8, 2025; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection and W. D. Smith Commercial Photography, Inc. Collection
• D Magazine article, “Sid Richardson: Fort Worth's Philanthropic Oil Baron," by Victor Sanchez, February 11, 2025; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• Texas Tribune article, "Trump’s mass deportation plans have echoes of a 1950s federal crackdown that swept through Texas," by Uriel J. García, February 12, 2025; images used from the Texas AFL-CIO Mexican American Affairs Committee Records
• The Shorthorn photo feature, "Step back in time: Celebrating 130 years of UTA," by Ronaldo Bolanos, Samarie Goffney, Dang Le, and Christine Vo, February 12, 2025; photos taken of items in our Artifacts Collection
• WFAA video, "L. Clifford Davis, civil rights attorney who fought to desegregate North Texas schools, has died," February 15, 2025; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• The Shorthorn article, "Ceremonial Carlisle Cannon returns to UTA, brings back tradition," by Sandra Randjelovic, February 18, 2025; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection and the Arlington Citizen-Journal Collection
• City of Arlington article, "Legends & Legacies: Former Arlington Mayor Elzie Odom’s Family Papers," by Susan Schrock, February 26, 2025; image used from the Elzie and Ruby Odom Papers
• WFAA article, "Former Arlington Lamar QB, Baylor legend J.J. Joe passes away at 54," by Zachary Yanes, February 26, 2025; image used from the Arlington Citizen-Journal Collection
• Arlington Report article, "How Arlington Entertainment District transformed city into tourism destination," by Lance Murray, February 26, 2025; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection and the Jack White Photograph Collection
• UTA Magazine article, "Collected: Reby Cary Honored in Exhibit," published in the Winter 2025 issue; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• UTA Magazine article, "In Memoriam: Honoring the Legendary Allan Saxe," published in the Winter 2025 issue; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• Arlington Sentinel News article, "Rebel battle flags once flew across UTA," by Samarie Goffney, March 4, 2025; images used from the Rebel Theme Controversy Collection
• Fort Worth Report article, "Women’s book club celebrates 100 years of uplifting literacy in Fort Worth," by David Moreno, March 20, 2025; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• The Shorthorn article, "UTA's military roots, legacy continues to inspire students," by Pedro Malkomes, Amanda Aldridge and Matthew Tibebe, March 25, 2025; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection

UTA's 130th Anniversary Interactive History Timelines

UTA's Department of Marketing, Messaging, and Engagement has produced two detailed interactive history timelines in celebration of the university's upcoming 130th Anniversary! These timelines utilized a total of 87 images from 17 different collections, you can browse the photos and learn more about UTA's history through the links below:

Celebrating 130 Years: The University of Texas at Arlington

From private primary school to military academy to agricultural junior college to world-class research university, The University of Texas at Arlington has evolved over the past 130 years to become the academic powerhouse and community pillar it is today. Take a look back at the many milestones, triumphs, challenges, and changes it experienced along the way.

The Magic of Being a Maverick

Can you believe UTA is turning 130 in 2025? It’s been a journey full of big ideas, unforgettable traditions, and at least five name changes. In honor of our 130th anniversary, we’re taking a visual tour through our rich history. Join us as we dive into the archives and relive the research, innovation, student life, and campus moments that make being a Maverick something truly special.

Published Materials

• International Map Collectors Society (IMCoS) Journal article, "Virginia Garrett: Map collector, donor and philanthropist and the ripple effects of her generosity," by Dennis Reinhartz, December 2024 issue; images used from the Jenkins and Virginia Garrett Family Papers and the Virginia Garrett Cartographic History Collection
• "Truth, Lies, and the Questions in Between," by Laura M. Elliott, published by Algonquin Books, January 2025; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• "Fort Worth Characters 2," by Richard Selcer, published by The University of North Texas Press, February 2025; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection and the Byron C. Utecht Papers
• "Quartermasters of Conquest: The Mexican-American War and the Making of South Texas, 1846-1860," by Christopher Menking, published by University of Oklahoma Press, March 2025; images used from the U.S.-Mexico War Collection
• "No Fixed Abode: The Life and Times of America’s Greatest Unknown Spywriter," by James Atlee Phillips, published by TCU Press, March 2025; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection

Film/Television

• Episode of Ancient Aliens titled "Top Ten UFO Crashes" (Season 21, Episode 3), on The History Channel, aired February 21, 2025
• Film titled "Shaking It Up: The Life and Times of Liz Carpenter," produced by Liz Carpenter Film Partners, March 2025; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection

New ArchivesSpace Finding Aids

Early Texas History

• GA109-J: Governor's Message
  • This broadside was written by James W. Robinson, who was a prominent politician during in the Texas Republic. He was named Governor in 1836, which was contested by Henry Smith, who was also named Governor. He was a prisoner of war in Mexico and obtained a release from Santa Anna, whom he corresponded with and promised to assist with forging agreements between Texas and Mexico. This broadside was published in 1836 while he was contending for the office of Governor, and expresses Robinson’s thoughts on the role, Texas’ Independence, and contemporary difficulties faced by Texans.
• GA109-L: War Department
  • This order was Sam Houston’s first military order enacted while he was President of the Republic of Texas, and calls for all able bodied man to serve in the military and prepare for war against Mexico.
• GA109-N: El Correo Atlántico – Essay
• GA109-Q: Southern Pacific Railway Co. – Stocks
• GA109-T: National Bank of Texas – Bill
  • A bill presented before the Texas Senate establishing the National Bank of Texas, January 5, 1838.
• GO109-X: Oaxaca Government Correspondence
• GA109-Y: Todd Correspondence
  • A letter conveying news of the War with Mexico, specifically the blockade of Vera Cruz, which began on May 14, 1846, soon after war was declared on April 25, 1846. It was written by Joshua Dawson Todd (1817-1861), midshipman aboard the sloop-of-war St. Mary's.
• GA109-AC: Van Hook Family letters
  • The letters in this collection were written by Solomon Van Hook and his daughter Anna E. Van Hook to Solomon's brother David Van Hook. These letters were written during the time the Van Hooks lived in Navarro County, Texas. In their correspondence, Solomon and Anna describe the climate of the region, crops, livestock, and prices of various goods. Of particular note within these letters are discussions about the slave trade in Texas and the South, and the experiences of Black Texans following the Civil War.

Contemporary Regional History Collection

• GA109-K: Order of the Knights of San Jacinto
• GA109-M: Thomas Ripley Letter
• GA109-O: Association Soldiers Mexican War
• GA109-P: J. Frank Norris Letter
  • This letter was written by pastor J. Frank Norris to Mrs. Claude Bransom, a member of the Fort Worth Baptist church where Norris pastored, offering words of comfort to her regarding the death of her husband. Norris was a very prominent Baptist leader and political influencer, and was known for his staunch and at times controversial stances on contemporary politics, church doctrines, and education.
• GA109-R: Civic Federation of Dallas
• GA109-S: Camp Bowie Collection
  • Photographs and postcards depicting Camp Bowie, a Texas Military Department training center located in west-central Texas on the southern outskirts of Brownwood.
• GA109-U: First United Methodist Church – Anniversary Program
• GA109-V: Manuel M. Miranda – Correspondence
  • Two letters between Manuel M. Miranda and David de la Fuente regarding the decommissioning of arms that was done in the region of Del Rio, Texas. The decommission of arms mentioned in this correspondence may have been due to what is known as the Mexican Border War and the arms embargo that had been placed against Mexico by the United States.
• GA109-W: Juarez – Revolutionary Testimonies
  • Two pages of witness testimonies regarding the activities of revolutionaries in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico. Witnesses were Miguel Bonilla, Eulogio Ramos, J. Cordova y Gómez. In these testimonies, which were made in Juarez on May 22, 1912, regarding the activities of Mexican Revolutionaries in the region and in Tlaxco, Tlaxcala.
• GA109-Z: Cattle Ranch Photo Album
  • This album depicts cowboys, horses, cattle roundup and branding; sheep shearing and the ranch buildings and scenery, including a windmill.
• GA109-AA: George W. Ewell Correspondence
• GA109-AB: O. K. Harry Steel Works, Dallas
• GA109-AD: Texas Independence - Alamo Art
• AR884: Galveston Storm Newspaper Collection
  • The newspapers in this collection were published after the 1900 Galveston Storm, which struck the island September 8-9, 1900, and the 1915 Galveston hurricane, which struck the island on August 17, 1915. The newspapers offer insight into the immediate effects of hurricanes on the island as well as the responses of the community, state, and nation to these disasters. Researchers may also observe the contrasts of the damage caused by hurricanes due to the extensive efforts Galveston made to construct a seawall and raise the city during the time between the 1900 and 1915 hurricanes. Most notably, the newspapers published after the 1900 Galveston Storm list our early lists of the deceased.
• AR885: Camp Dick Band
  • Camp Dick, full title Camp John Dick Aviation Concentration Camp, operated at the Texas State Fairgrounds in Dallas, Texas, from January 1918 to January 1919. The band members in this photo were members of the 679th Aero Squadron. The band was organized by Lester E. Harris and held concerts throughout Texas. A copy of this photo with further information on the band and its bandmaster was found in "History of Texas War Heroes," 1919.

Visit The Compass Rose in June for our next quarterly blog review!