SC007: Oread

Sub-Series

Identifier: RG04-S01-SS04

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Running from 1874-1895, the Oread collection includes information about the institution then known as the Mt. Carroll Seminary, which would later be called Shimer College. Copies of the Oread included a history of the college, information on the curriculum and campus, news about various campus events, and news about Seminary alumni. Many copies of the Oread began with prose, poetry, or transcribed speeches written by faculty, students, or alumni.

Dates

1874 - 1895

Language of Materials

English

Biographical / Historical

The Oread collection, running from 1874-1895, contained information about the Mt. Carroll Seminary’s curriculum and campus life. The Oread was published by the Oread society, and served largely to advertise the Seminary as a desirable institution for potential students. In the Oread, parents were assured that the seminary would be a proper place for their daughters to receive both an academic education and training for their future participation as wives in the household or as women with jobs. Published praise written by alumni and patrons furthered this goal of giving the school a desirable reputation.

At the time the Oread was published, the previously coeducational Seminary now admitted female students only, due to space constraints in the campus dormitories. At this time, the American Civil War had recently ended, and young men who’d fought in the war were looking to pursue college education again. This led to the issue of overcrowding in coeducational schools as the Seminary had been.