Introduction
In 2017, USU Special Collections and Archives (SCA) partnered with the College of Agriculture and Applied Science's Outdoor Product Design and Development (OPDD) program to develop a historical collection of books, catalogs, periodicals, photographs, and manuscripts documenting the history of outdoor gear. These materials, together with the strong environmental collections SCA has already built since the early 1970s, form the Outdoor Recreation Archive, which is highlighted in this guide.
As a public institution, SCA strives to make its collections accessible to anyone, from professional researchers to those with a more casual interest in the outdoor industry. These materials are particularly beneficial to students in the OPDD program, who represent the next generation of leaders in the outdoor industry. The Outdoor Recreation Archive gives these students easy access to historical records from which to better understand the past while drawing inspiration for the future.
For information about searching and viewing the archive, please see the information below.
Using This Guide
This guide categorizes materials in the archive by format: books, catalogs, periodicals, photographs, and manuscripts. You can navigate to these options using the tabs at the top of this guide.
Additionally, you can find information regarding USU Special Collections and Archives Outdoor Recreation Archive Research Fellowship in the final tab, "Research Fellowship." Applications are accepted September 15 to December 1.
Viewing the Archive
If you find materials you'd like to view, you can do so by visiting the SCA Reading Room. Plan your visit by viewing our page on using and visiting Special Collections.
If you are unable to visit our Reading Room, many materials can be digitized for a fee. The fee schedule can be viewed on the page linked above.
Donating to the Archive
If you'd like to donate materials to the Outdoor Recreation Archive, contact manuscript curator Clint Pumphrey at clint.pumphrey@usu.edu. You can make a monetary donation using the "donate" button on the right side of this page near the top.
Do you like the Outdoor Recreation Archive? Consider supporting our work with a monetary donation.
