University Archives Donations and Transfers
Private donations
The University Archives is happy to receive materials related to the university from private individuals, particularly UH students and alumni.
Please do not drop materials off at Special Collections without prior arrangements.
Typical items accepted
- Materials that describe your personal experience at UH (diaries, correspondence, photographs, scrapbooks, etc.)
- Records of student organizations
- Printed material (student publications, programs, flyers, posters, etc.)
- We do not currently accept Houstonian yearbooks or back issues of the Daily Cougar
- Artifacts and memorabilia related to UH (we are limited to what we can collect in this area)
- Audiovisual media related to UH
The University Archives accepts electronic formats, including emails, documents, websites, photographs, and audio-video.
Steps for private donations
- Contact the University Archivist to schedule an appraisal by email or by phone
- The archivist will determine whether the materials are appropriate for the University Archives and prepare your materials for donation
- Donations to the University Archives are considered gifts, which then become property of the University Archives
- The Archives will not accept materials on loan or a temporary basis
Departmental transfers
A small percentage of the records created by university units are historically significant and need permanent retention in the University Archives.
The University Archivist is responsible for working with units to identify, transfer, preserve, and provide access to historically significant university records.
Steps for a transfer
- Review the Transfer Guidelines (PDF) to determine if you think your materials are appropriate for the University Archives
- Contact the University Archivist to assess the materials
- The archivist will conduct the assessment by email or by phone
- If the records are appropriate for transfer to the University Archives, the Records Transfer Form (Word document) must be completed and the shipment of materials to Special Collections arranged in advance
- The completed form must accompany the records during transfer to University Archives