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This collection is composed of financial ledgers documenting the operations of boarding and housing facilities at South Dakota State University from 1885 to 1923, with one undated record. Materials include records for the Boarding Club, College Boarding Hall, Dormitory Club, and Cafeteria, reflecting administrative functions such as board payments, expenses, labor costs, and student refunds. The ledgers offer insight into student life, university housing, and institutional operations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Notable items include the Board Deposit Account Ledger (1888–1899), Cafeteria and Boarding Club ledger (1921–1923), and Dormitory Club Journal (1908–1915). The records are arranged in two boxes and span a transitional period in university residential services.

The ledgers provide early documentation of student housing and dining services at Dakota Agricultural College (now SDSU), illustrating economic and administrative aspects of campus life. These materials are significant for studies in higher education history, university infrastructure, and student welfare in a land-grant institution context.

The J.M. Aldrich Diaries consist of three volumes documenting Aldrich’s student years at Dakota Agricultural College from 1885 to 1888. The diaries provide a detailed daily account of his experiences during the formative years of the college. Each volume represents one academic year: Volume 1 (1885–1886), Volume 2 (1886–1887), and Volume 3 (1887–1888). Between 1930 and 1932, Aldrich transcribed the original diaries into typewritten copies and added parenthetical annotations for clarification.

Entries are organized by day and date, offering insight into Aldrich’s routine activities, travels between Minnesota and Brookings, and observations of campus life. Although many entries describe ordinary events, they collectively convey a rich portrayal of student life and the broader Dakota Territory environment during the 1880s. Notable topics include transportation challenges, early college operations, and administrative changes, such as the replacement of President George Lilley with Lewis McLouth.

These diaries are a primary source reflecting the student perspective during the early years of Dakota Agricultural College. They document both the mundane and institutional aspects of academic life in the upper Midwest frontier and serve as a foundational narrative for understanding student culture and college development in the Dakota Territory.