University Archives
The BVU Archives was founded in 2013 and is dedicated to preserving the history of Buena Vista University. The Archives collects documents, photographs and other memorabilia pertaining to our institutional history.
Alumni and friends who have items to donate to the Archives are encouraged to contact us. The Archives is located on the second floor of the library and its collections are available for use by appointment.
University Archivist
- Joan Zwagerman
- archives@bvu.edu
- 712.749.2094
BVU Digital Archives
BVU Digital Archives includes photographs, videos, oral histories. You can search by keyword, subject, year, or format.
Alumni Publications
The archives holds alumni publications spanning from 1944-2019, beginning with The Bulletin (1944-1964), The View (1965-1972), and Buena Vista Today (1973-2019). Other publications that ran concurrently include The Beaver Report (1955-1958) and BV Briefs (1999-2015).
Student Newspapers
Over a century of campus news... with a point!
The Buena Vista University news archive site includes official campus newspapers printed between 1892 and 2012, as well as selected unofficial publications.
The Tack Online
The Tack Online is the current student news publication of Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa. The purpose of The Tack at BVU is to provide students, faculty/staff, and community members with an accurate, timely, and reliable news source focused on events that take place on our campus and within the Storm Lake community. Our primary audience is BVU students. This online news publication is written by students for students.
Yearbooks
Take a trip down memory lane, and visit the Iowa Heritage Digital Collections website to view digitized versions of BVU's yearbook, The Beaver Log.
Years available are 1907-1999. Any gaps in coverage mean that no yearbook was published in that year or range of years.
Historical Digital Objects Collection
The BVU Archives' Historical Digital Objects Collection contains a variety of digital objects relating to BVU history including oral histories, historical photographs of campus and past university presidents, World War I scrapbooks, papers about the impact of COVID-19 on campus, and the Centennial Time Capsule.
Historical Digital Objects Collection
Centennial Time Capsule
In 1991, Buena Vista College celebrated its 100th anniversary. Student groups, faculty, staff, and President Keith Briscoe and his wife, Carmen Briscoe, placed items in the Centennial Time Capsule. When the football field underwent renovations in 2011, the capsule was exhumed and stored.
BVU Archives Youtube Channel
Browse the BVU Archives Youtube channel to see selected Commencement footage and Athletics films as well as other films and videos from the past.