For the University of Northern Iowa's Rod Library, it was a celebration times 3 on October 1, 2004. A good portion of the fourth floor of the library was transformed for an event to celebrate: 1) the acquisition of the millionth volume; 2) the 40th Anniversary of the completion of the first phase of construction of the Rod Library; and 3) to honor Donald O. Rod, the library's namesake and director from 1953-1986, who passed away in 2003.

In 1964, when the first phase of construction was completed, the library housed 210,000 volumes. When the second phase was completed in 1975, the capacity of the library was 700,000 volumes. The fourth floor addition (third phase) brought the capacity up to 1,100,000 in 1995. So when it came time for the millionth volume to be added, it needed to be a very special book. Wells' Pocket Hand-Book of Iowa, published in 1857, was the chosen book. It is a rare copy the Library acquired in good condition. The book is housed in the Special Collections & Archives unit of Rod Library, but the digital version is presented here. For more detailed information about the millionth volume, please see this Rod Library Special Collections & Archives essay.

Also presented in this digital collection are the pamphlet, bookmark, and photos that commemorate the event. The pamphlet contains a section of Twenty Fun Facts about Rod Library. See if you know these facts: Which 5 buildings on campus have housed the library? What are "closed stacks" and how long did the library have them? How did UNISTAR get its name?

To go to the Rod Library page, click here.