The winner of Archives Madness 2025
Civil War Letters
University Archives & Special Collections, USI
Post written by Mona Meyer, Archives and Special Collections Metadata Librarian
Welcome to Archives Madness 2025, the friendly contest between area institutions vying for recognition for having the coolest artifact. We’ll start by introducing the institutions and their nominated artifacts, then proceed with several weeks of voting (which you will be able to do online) until all but the winner are eliminated. You may notice a similarity between this a certain athletic competition that takes place in March and culminates this year on April 7 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. That similarity is intentional!
Now, let’s meet the competitors and their artifacts.
University Archives and Special Collections
Rice Library, 3rd floor University of Southern Indiana
In the summer of 1972 the Lilly Endowment, Inc. of Indianapolis, Indiana awarded the then Indiana State University Evansville a three-year grant to establish an archival project for the acquisition, preservation and processing of regional material. At the end of the third year the University was to assume responsibility for continuing the growth of the Special Collections. It started with just a few regional history books on Indiana from the library’s own collection. Today, the University Archives and Special Collection has over 850 unique collections, 800 oral history interviews, 6,500 rare and unique books, and 30,000 digital resources.
The first item is UNITE CubeSat, a miniature satellite. It was built by undergraduate engineering students here at USI, funded by a NASA grant as part of its Undergraduate Student Instrument Project. After it was launched from the International Space Station, the satellite moved into the lower ionosphere to measure temperature, both in space and of the UNITE CubeSat (internally and externally), and to track the decay of the satellite as it reentered Earth’s atmosphere. The lower ionosphere is a little studied area of space, so UNITE CubeSat was able to contribute new and valuable data to the study of space. It remained in orbit at least 2 years 7 months. Here is the video of the UNITE Cubesat Deployment from the International Space Station.
The second items are these letters between Captain William Henry Peckinpaugh, who served with the 49th Regiment Indiana Infantry , Company F, from 1861-1865, and his fiancée, Mary Ann “Mollie” Emmick. Their letters reflect real time reactions to events during the Civil War, including the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, as well as a deepening of their personal relationship. It was common to include a pressed flower with the letter, as seen in the second letter.
Newburgh Museum
503 State St. in Newburgh, IN
The Newburgh Museum preserves exhibits and educates all visitors about the history and culture of Newburgh and the surrounding areas’ unique river town heritage.
The first entry is this pair of WWII bomber pants with gunner gloves, donated to the Newburgh Museum by Mark Grimm in 2024. Seeing a bomber jacket is a fairly common experience, but it is quite a rare find to have bomber pants as they tend to wear out with active use.
The second item is Marcia Yockey’s WFIE jacket, currently on display at the museum along with many other of her personal belongings. Yockey (1922-2000) was a meteorologist who broadcast the weather for 35 years on WFIE. The museum will be honoring her 25 years after her passing by holding a special Speaking Series on September 28th, 2025.
Evansville Wartime Museum
7503 Petersburg Road, Evansville, IN 47725
“Evansville Wartime Museum is the place to visit for the surprising, interesting and world-changing story of our community’s involvement in winning WWII. The stories we tell come from home front workers and battlefront warriors — these are the people who were there. You can also explore the history of Evansville during WWI, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War in our exhibits dedicated to those times.”
As winner of ArchivesMadness 2024, the Evansville Wartime Museum is entitled to submit its winning entry again. This silk wedding dress (left) was made from the bride’s fiance’s WWII parachute. It was worn by Phyllis Hall when she married Jim Hall, a veteran of the US Army Air Corps on March 19, 1949 in Port Huron, Michigan. “Real” silk would have been expensive, but the thrifty bride had plenty of fabric from the parachute.
The second item is a Republic Aviation baseball uniform (right) worn by Leo Beckman who worked as a supervisor at Republic Aviation during WWII.
Owensboro Museum of Science & History
122 East 2nd Street, Owensboro, KY 42303
The Owensboro Museum of Science & History, founded in 1966, is housed within a historic 19th/early 20th-century building in downtown Owensboro, Kentucky. The museum is a gathering spot, a learning center, and a family-friendly entertainment experience.
The first entry is this poster (left) showing the internal and external systems of a Saturn V rocket used in the Apollo space program. This poster was included in a 1967 public information packet sent out by NASA to keep any rocket enthusiasts updated during the space race.
The second entry is these several 37mm shell casings (middle and right) that have been hand sculpted and carved into pieces of trench art. Crafted by a German POW in 1918, these pieces are largely similar, likely either a hobby or a way to trade for extra food or luxury rations, such as chocolate or cigarettes.
Working Men’s Institute
407 Tavern Street, New Harmony, IN 47631
Established by philanthropist William Maclure in 1838, the Working Men’s Institute (WMI) set as its mission the dissemination of useful knowledge to those who work with their hands. After 170 years of continuous service, this goal is still at the heart of our mission. Maclure, who was a business partner with Robert Owen in the communal experiment in New Harmony from 1825-1827, was devoted to the ideal of education for the common man as a means of positive change in society. At New Harmony, The Working Men’s Institute was one manifestation of this ideal. The Working Men’s Institute in New Harmony was the first of 144 WMIs in Indiana and 16 in Illinois. It is the only one remaining. Many WMIs were absorbed by township libraries or Carnegie libraries. Yet the one in New Harmony remained. Today, the WMI is a public library, a museum and an archive. In each of these areas, the WMI tries to stay true to the original mission of William Maclure.
The first item is a Gavel. A wooden gavel, made by a local man from wood taken from a local house when its parlor was enlarged, then hand carved by a member of the Minerva Society. It was then given to the Woman’s Library Club here in New Harmony. It was made and given to the WMI in 1911.
The second item is a pair of Chinese “lotus” shoes made for women with bound feet. In 1923 they were sent by a friend in the U. S. Marines who was serving in China to a woman here in Posey County. In 1928 they were given to the WMI. They are entirely handsewn.
Historic New Harmony
401 North Arthur Street, New Harmony, IN 47631
New Harmony was the source of two communal experiments in the 19th century: religious separatists from Germany who aspired to Christian perfection, and later, followers of Robert Owen who wanted to establish a model society of educational and social equality. “Historic New Harmony is a unified program of the University of Southern Indiana and the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites. By preserving its utopian legacy, Historic New Harmony inspires innovation and progressive thought through its programs & collections.”
The first is this life mask of Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (left), created by J.M. Christen around 1809. The Pestalozzi Foundation of America donated it to Historic New Harmony, Inc. in 1982. Pestalozzi (1746-1827) was a Swiss educator and educational reformer whose methods influenced education in New Harmony in the mid-1820s.
The second entry is this pennant (right) created in 1914 as a souvenir of the centennial of the founding of New Harmony, Indiana.
John James Audubon Museum
John James Audubon State Park, 3100 US Hwy 41 North, Henderson, KY
The museum interprets the lives and work of John James Audubon and his family within a timeline of world events. Three galleries chronicle the Audubon story, including the family’s 1810-1819 residency in Henderson, Kentucky. Over 200 objects are on display, including artifacts from Audubon’s Kentucky years, a complete set of his masterwork, The Birds of America, and many original artworks.
The first item is this cross pendant (left) that was given by John James Audubon to his wife, Lucy Audubon on Christmas day 1826. It has their initials and the date inscribed on the back. It is made of gold and amethyst, and was passed down in the Audubon family before arriving at our museum.
The second item is this drawing of a Brown Thrasher (right), drawn and colored by John James Audubon when he lived in Henderson, KY. He dated it April 24, 1815, which is a mere two days before his 30th birthday.
University of Evansville
University Archives in Bower-Suhrheinrich Library/Clifford Memorial Library
University Archives is the repository for archival records pertaining to the history and operations of the University of Evansville.
The first item is this Apple Doll (left and middle). As the name implies, it is a doll dressed in a cap and gown that has an apple injected with resin as its head. This doll copies a Native American tradition, and dates to UE’s Moore’s Hill College era (circa 1887-1919).
The second item is “The Pocket of Indiana,” an original cartoon (right) drawn by Karl Kae Knecht in 1912. Knecht was an editorial cartoonist who worked for the Evansville Courier 1906-1960.
There you are….all the entries for the 2025 Archives Madness contest. Read the descriptions and decide which are your favorites, then be sure to vote for them. Voting will be done on this blog. Here’s the timeline:
- March 17-23, 2025: Sweet 16
- March 24-30, 2025: Elite 8
- March 31-April 6, 2025: Final 4
- April 7-April 13: Championship
- April 14, 2025: Revealing 2025 Archives Madness Champion
Keep checking the blog to see how the voting is progressing, and to help your favorite artifact make it to the championship. Get your friends to vote, too! May the BEST artifact win!
amUSIngArtifacts 
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