University Archives

An archives is a wonderful place where people can go to enrich their understanding of the world by gathering firsthand facts, data, and evidence from letters, reports, notes, memos, photographs, and other primary sources. Unlike other resources at the University Libraries, materials in the University Archives cannot be checked out. Additionally, the archives are "closed stacked," which means they are not browseable like the shelves of books in a traditional library. 

At Carnegie Mellon University Archives, you can:

• Learn about the beginnings of artificial intelligence in the papers of Herb Simon and Allen Newell.
• Take a deep dive into the extraordinary history of Drama at CMU through the department's papers, prompt books, and photograph collection, or one of the many collections donated by notable alum or former faculty members.
• Trace CMU's commitment to diversity in the Carnegie Mellon Action Plan records, the Commission on the Status and Needs of Women at CMU (COSNW) records, or the papers of Shirley Angrist.
• Hear the early pioneers of artificial science in their own words in the collection of Pamela McCroduck.
• Explore the various capacities students have been involved in campus life through the records of Greek Life, Office of Student Affairs, Scotch n' Soda, Student Government, and the numerous publications by students.
• Discover what the campus looked like before the Cohon University Center was built in the General Photograph and Marketing and Communications Photograph Collections.

The Carnegie Mellon University Archives are open to all, regardless of academic affiliation.