New book examines UW history through photos

LARAMIE — The authors of a new book recognizing the University of Wyoming’s 125th anniversary had the same reaction to seeing their finished product released to the public.

“It was a relief,” Rick Ewig, associate director of UW’s American Heritage Center, said.

“Yeah, I think relief is probably a good word for it,” Tamsen Hert, head of the Emmett D. Chisum Special Collections at UW Libraries, added.

Their partnership produced “University of Wyoming,” a 128-page pictorial history illustrated with more than 200 vintage and modern photos, as part of Arcadia Publishing’s “Campus History Series.”

The idea for the project, the authors said, stretches back years, but the push to publish the book began in March, with a tight deadline looming in June, and revisions due in early fall.

“We thought it was perfect timing since it would dovetail with (UW’s) 125th anniversary,” Ewig, a Wisconsin native who has been with the university since 1992, said. “We thought it was important to get it done this year so it would coincide.”

“It was a priority, I think, for both of us,” Hert, a Denver native whose career with UW began in 1986, tells the Laramie Boomerang (http://bit.ly/SHVwKz).

The book blends photos with various campus themes.

Chapters are titled: Free Admission and Equal Admission; Dinonsaurs to Golden Ores; Home on the Range; Prepare for Complete Living; Roaming the University of Wyoming; On the Heights; Your University Stands Steadfast in War and Peace; and Wyoming’s University.

“We were trying to be creative (with the book’s themes),” Hert said. “It’s just an overview of campus life, education, the different opportunities offered to students and returning students.”

Photos within the book came from the Heritage Center, the library or other UW sources. The university’s 1904 football team graces the cover.

“We couldn’t do this book without Cowboy athletics,” Ewig said.

Although the authors have a long history with UW, they said they rediscovered important aspects of the school while researching, creating and gathering content for the book.

“One thing that kind of jumped out at me . was that the university often has been a leader in certain fields,” Ewig said. “I think oftentimes people in Wyoming don’t realize how much of a leader the university has been in certain areas. It’s really quite impressive to realize that even from the near beginning that Wyoming was looking to be a real leader.”

The reach UW has throughout the state was another aspect of the university Ewig said the two authors learned to appreciate.

“We often say that this is the only four-year public educational institution in the state, but its mission is truly statewide, which is one thing we tried to bring out (in the book),” he said.

Ewig and Hert aren’t only joined through their book collaboration, they’re also involved with the Wyoming State Historical Society. Ewig is the organization’s president, and Hert is the first vice president.

Both are pursuing future book projects, though independently.

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Information from: Laramie (Wyo.) Daily Boomerang, http://www.laramieboomerang.com