Vassar College in 1865

Main Building of Vassar College with lawn and young trees.
Main Building of Vassar College with lawn and young trees.
Students preparing to serve punch and doughnuts aboard the steamer Seagate (misdated by photographer)
Students dancing aboard the steamer Seagate
Students gathered aboard the steamer Seagate. Some are in costume including one person in blackface
Students gathered aboard the steamer Seagate. Some are in costume including one person in blackface
The steamer Seagate docked at Poughkeepsie before the Junior-Senior Boatride
The Vassar LGBTQ Oral History Project is a partnership between the LGBTQ Center, the Women's Studies Program and the Vassar College Archives that began in the fall of 2012. The goal of the project is to capture the experiences, stories, and reflections of LGBTQ and ally alumnae/i as well as former
Vassar College Library was built in 1905, the architecture and the style of the building is perpendicular Gothic, with many embellishments. Among those embellishments are approximately thirty-six gargoyles and grotesques. Gargoyles are decorative water-bearing fixtures meant to redirect rainwater
Main Building of Vassar College with Vassar Lake. Trees, row boats and people are in the foreground.
Northeast view of Main Building of Vassar College with paths and lawn. Building is partially covered by bare vines.
Northwest view of Main Building of Vassar College with paths, lawn, trees and people.
Northwest view of Main Building of Vassar College with paths, lawn, trees and people.
Picture of drawing of Main building of Vassar College with paths, lawn, shrubs and people.
Main Building of Vassar College seen through entrance gates of the Lodge with evergreen-lined drive.
Southeast view of Main Building of Vassar College with lawn and trees.
Southeast view of Main Building of Vassar College with lawn and trees.
Northeast view of Main Building of Vassar College with path, lawn and trees.
Center part of Main Building of Vassar College with evergreens on each side, horse-drawn sled and snow.
The Memorial Minutes collection consists of short biographical pieces from Vassar faculty members, read in their honor at faculty meetings from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The collection includes biographical information from many notable people in Vassar history, including George
Content Warning
The Vassar College Archives within the Digital Library include some images, texts, and material items that are racist, xenophobic, or otherwise harmful. The Vassar Libraries have provided descriptive text and additional notes whenever possible to alert Digital Library users to these items. The Engaged Pluralism Initiative Race and Racism in Historical Collections Project Group is working with the library on contextualizing and facilitating community conversations about these materials. For more information see: https://library.vassar.edu/rrhc
Here you will find digitized archival collections, oral histories, and more. We are continually expanding the collections and improving access. You may find additional digital resources that reside outside the digital library here, and a selection of Online Exhibitions here.
Collections Overview
The Archives & Special Collections Library is part of the Vassar College Libraries system. It holds the rare book, manuscript, and archival collections of the college. It collects, preserves, and makes available rare and unique collections, and also engages in teaching and outreach activities. This collection of finding aids describe items in both the Virginia B. Smith Memorial Manuscript Collection and the College Archives.
The Vassar College herbarium holds over 8,000 specimens of vascular plants, bryophytes, and algae. Holdings are primarily from northeastern North America, and include collections made by several notable 19th century botanists. To learn more about this project visit the website here.
Vassar College's institutional repository reflects the research and scholarly output of the Vassar College community. It provides access to senior theses, peer reviewed open access articles, and projects from a wide range of disciplines.