Posting on Campus: A History

Moments in time, be it cultural, social, or political, have pushed students at the University of Minnesota to act upon their collective opinions and raise their voices to be heard. A popular method to express these opinions is the campus poster. Through appointed student organizations, each decade of time has shown these viewpoints through self-designed posters and fliers that they scattered across campus. From the oaks on the Knoll, to the bulletin boards and kiosks, and the inter-campus mail, messages have been shared through these mediums for impact and connection. 

Today, one visually sees the events, opinions and advertisements depicted by student organizations at the University of Minnesota as they walk across campus. The method may not be new, but the content and even the context, in some cases, remain evergreen and a clear voice of the student body.

Hanging posters across campus was a point of contention between students, faculty and the administration in the early 1900s. At that time, student groups were nailing posters on tree trunks, up until the Spring of 1903, when President Northrop announced that continuation of this action would be prohibited (1).

From the 1910s to the 1930s, guidelines and regulations around student groups on campus were formalized. In the Fall of 1936, the Board of Regents required all signs, posters, announcements and other publicity materials to be confined to the bulletin boards (2). 

One “almost unconsciously absorbs the information contained on the posters, which [the student] would otherwise get only by close study of a crowded bulletin board. In this way each student undoubtedly saves 4 minutes a day, 20 a week, 80 a month,  720 a year; and 2,404 students in a year save 1,730,880 minutes or 28,848 hours!”

- Ariel, January 25, 1896