As the Iowa Digital Library approaches the 100,000-item mark, we’re celebrating this milestonetemp by highlighting some of our favorite items from the collections.

Title: Louise standing amongst roses in City Park, Iowa City, Iowa, between 1924 and 1928
Creator: unknown
Collection: African American Women in Iowa Digital Collection

I love this photograph from the college scrapbook of Althea Moore, an African American woman who attended the University of Iowa in the early 1920s. I am moved when I look at these snapshots because I think of the courage it took for these young women to enter a mostly white, mostly male world, where their opportunities were bought at the price of segregation and condescension. And still what the images capture are the camaraderie, the moments of high spirits, the pride of smart, brave young women and men. I imagine Althea Moore coming across this photo years later and remembering a dear friend and a perfect summer day in City Park.  

–Christine Tade
Library Assistant, Central Technical Services