Happy late Spring 2023! Since our last update we’ve welcomed nine new collections from three partners: Utah Department of Cultural & Community Engagement, Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, and Utah Valley University-Fulton Library. The collections span a wide time period and show off the range of experiences in the Intermountain West. Without further ado, here’s a bit more on each.

Utah Department of Cultural & Community Engagement

DCCE added two new collections this spring: Utah Historical Society Oral History Collection, and Extractions from the Land: Mining and Mineral History in Utah.

Utah Historical Society Oral History Collection is a collection of oral histories from the Utah Historical Society Collection division. Many of the oral histories were funded by Utah Humanities grants. The oral histories were gathered over the decades and from around the state of Utah. These oral histories represent unique histories and different communities from around the state.

Meanwhile, Extractions from the Land: Mining and Mineral History in Utah is a combination of smaller collections from the Utah Historical Society collections. Utah has a rich history of mining from silver to salt; mineral extraction has shaped the Utah landscape over the decades from boom to bust. This collection is currently being described and additional items will be added soon.

Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library

USU contributed six new collections to MWDL:

• Beaver Mountain Oral History Project
• Medieval and Renaissance Manuscript Leaf Collection
• Zane Grey Rainbow Bridge Photograph Album
• Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) Records
• S. George Ellsworth Papers (Selected Items)
• Smith Brothers Lumber Company Records (Selected Items)

The Medieval and Renaissance Leaf Collection is a resource for faculty and students interested in the history of the European book, particularly the development of the medieval codex. On a more modern note, Zane Grey was the best-known author of Western novels in the early 20th Century. His books shaped Americans’ views of the West as well as inspired other Western authors such as Louis Lamour.

The Beaver Mountain Oral History Project includes oral history interviews and photographs from Beaver Mountain (Garden City, Utah) volunteer ski patrol, employees, owners, and guests.

The Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) Records consists of the minutes of UAMPS meetings from 1980 to the present. These minutes detail energy projects, trainings, and other important topics for UAMPS.

Finally, selected items from the S. George Ellsworth Papers and Smith Brothers Lumber Company records detail local development in the Logan, Utah area.

Utah Valley University, Fulton Library

Last but hardly least, the Barbara von Diether, Ed. D., Collection of Wasatch Campus Scrapbooks cover 1992 to 2003. These six scrapbooks that were created by Dr. Barbara von Diether, Ed.D., former Dean of the Wasatch Campus of Utah Valley State College, document the development of the Utah Valley Community College/Utah Valley State College Park City Education Center and later Wasatch Campus in Heber City. The scrapbooks contains photographs, newspaper clippings from the Salt Lake Tribune, Provo Herald, Wasatch Wave, and the Park Record, course offerings and registration information, and brochures and other information about UVSC’s activities in Park City and Heber City.