University Archives includes a number of collections containing photographs. One of our largest photographs collections is the AU Historic Photographs and Prints Collection, which includes images documenting the history of American University and the growth of the campus over the years. Additional items will be added to the collection as digitization continues.

AU Historic Photographs and Prints Collection

This collection includes images documenting the early history of American University and its campus in northwest Washington D.C. throughout the late 19th century and the 20th century. These photographs trace the development of the campus from the groundbreaking of its first building in 1896, through rapid growth in the 1920's, up to the 1970s. The collection includes photographs from World War I when the campus housed the U.S. Army's Camp Leach and Camp AU and World War II when the campus housed the U.S. Navy Bomb Disposal School and an American Red Cross school for nurses. Also present are photographs of the University's founders, students, and prominent officials who visited the campus, including John F. Kennedy and others.