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Special Collections: Muhlenberg College Collection (College Archives)

This collection contains the published works of the College ( "The Muhlenberg Weekly," the "Ciarla," student handbooks, etc.) as well as collected documentation relating to College history, campus buildings, administrators, faculty and staff, student orga

Muhlenberg College Historical Photographs

Trexler Library's archive holds thousands of original photographs depicting Muhlenberg College and its students, faculty, and administration throughout the late-19th and 20th centuries. These images are part of the Muhlenberg College Collection. The majority of the photographs were taken by the Public Relations department and were used in the Ciarla, Muhlenberg's yearbook, as well as in the alumni magazine and other outlets. Over 2,500  photographs have been digitized and are being added to the digital archive regularly.

  • Historical Campus Photographs
    • Since its inception in 1848, and its reconstitution as "Muhlenberg College" in 1867, our institution's history can be told through its footprint, both at its current location on Chew Street in Allentown, PA, and at its original nineteenth-century location at 4th and Walnut Streets.
  • Muhlenberg College Photographic History Collection
    • Images of activities, sporting events, graduations, and student life from the late 19th through the mid 20th centuries.
  • Navy V-12 and V-5 World War II Photograph Collection
    • From 1943 to 1946, Muhlenberg College was one of 131 colleges and universities that hosted a Navy V-12 (and V-5) training unit. Allowing the students to accelerate their undergraduate degrees while preparing them to serve, the program was mutually beneficial for the institutions and the military.
  • Charles F. Seidel '14 Photograph Collection
    • Charles F. Seidel (1885-1957) was a member of the Class of 1914. This collection of his personal photographs depicts life at the College in the early 1910s. Seidel served as teacher, principal, assistant superintendent, and superintendent in the Allentown School District for 34 years. In 1948, Muhlenberg granted him and honorary doctor of pedagogy degree.