Inside Iowa State

Inside Archives

Submit news

Send news for Inside to inside@iastate.edu, or call (515) 294-7065. See publication dates, deadlines.

About Inside

Inside Iowa State, a newspaper for faculty and staff, is published by the Office of University Relations.

June 11, 2004

old Marston Water tower postcard from 1913

A special find

Tanya Zanish-Belcher, associate library professor and head of the library's special collections, made a real find during a recent trip to an antique store in Des Moines -- a postcard featuring a view from the campus water tower showing the ruins of Chemistry Hall following a fire in 1913. The fire completely demolished the building, leaving only a cartload of chemicals and equipment. "We have never seen this image before," Zanish-Belcher said. She bought the postcard and donated it to University Archives. On the back is a note that reads:

Dear Miss Erickson,

This is one view of Ames which I'll wager you've never seen. It's one I took myself and there weren't over a dozen printed.