Archives and Special Collections recently processed a collection of South Dakota Academy of Science papers.

This collection is mainly correspondence about the Academy’s 1928-1930 annual meetings. The letters and programs make a stack of papers about an inch thick.

This is one of the most fun collections I have processed. Members are so excited to tell each other what is new in science. At their 1928 banquet, they saw a demonstration of television.

Archives and Special Collections also has 3 related publications:

Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science

Science in the service of the state: a centennial history of the South Dakota Academy of Science

Articles of incorporation and by-laws of the South Dakota Academy of Science.

South Dakota Oral History Center has an interview with Charles Estee where he discusses the South Dakota Academy of Science and other topics.

Occasionally when processing a collection, you will find things that are intriguing but completely off-topic. I found a 1928 letter written on Sioux Falls South Dakota Chamber of Commerce stationery which shows what they want you to notice about their city.