A finding aid is a guide to an archival collection. It helps researchers identify primary and secondary sources relevant to their research. Each finding aid provides historical or biographical context and explains how the collection is organized and its inclusive contents.

Northwestern University Archives database of finding aids 

The list below features links to the finding aids of personal papers of Northwestern alumnae. Personal papers are a collection of documents acquired by or received by an individual that often reflects their life or career. It also includes links to collections that include files about Northwestern alumnae. The collections listed below were donated to Northwestern University Archives. This by no means is an exhaustive list. As new collections are available, this list will be updated. Also, please note that some collections or portions of collections are restricted. Review the "Conditions Governing Access" section of the finding aid for more information. 

• Alvord, Katharine (18661-1963), theater professor
• Barber, Ethel (1914-1999), first woman to earn a doctorate from the school of speech, educator, philanthropist  
• Boettcher Bogue, Emily (1907-1992), pianist  
• Bonds, Margaret (via Boettcher), African American  
• DeCrow, Karen, (1937-2014), feminist, activist, lawyer, NOW President 
• Dunham, Katherine (via Katherine Flowers and Herskovits), dancer, African American  
• Dussault, Nancy (1936- ), television and Broadway actress, singer  
• Flowers, Katherine (1896-1982), dancer, choreographer, educator, African American  
• Geyer, Georgie Anne (1935-2019), journalist, foreign correspondent 
• Henkle, Eloise (1923-1995), journalist, foreign correspondent (Vietnam War)  
• Jackson, Angela (1951-   ), poet, novelist, playwright 
• Mason, Claudine (1899-1993), educator
• Morton, Lorraine (1918-2018), educator, politician, mayor of Evanston, African American 
• Neal, Patricia (1926-2010), actress
• Nixon, Agnes (1923-2016), soap opera screenwriter 
• Paterson, Eva Jefferson (1949-   ), civil rights attorney
• Reid, Daphne Maxwell (1948-   ), model, actress, fashion designer, photographer, author
• Rose, Ada Campbell (1901-1976), author, periodical editor, journalist 
• Weston, Mary Ann (1940- ), journalist
• Whitney, Myrtel, depicts the life of women Northwestern students in the 1890s

Alumnae Organizations

• Alumnae of Northwestern, 1929-2001

Here are additional resources for researching Northwestern alumnae: 

• Biographical Files (typically includes newspaper clippings, press releases, obituaries)
• Photograph Files  
• Daily Northwestern, (1871-2016)
• Student Handbooks 
• Student Directories 
• Statistical Summaries 
• President Reports 
• Northwestern Alumni News publications, 1903-1987:
  • 1903-1914
  • 1914-1917
  • 1918-1921
  • 1921-1969
  • 1971-1987

• Recommended searches include Daphne Maxwell Reid, Kathleen Bethel, Angela Jackson, Joyce Hughes, Alysia Tate, Alice Palmer, Dorothy Tucker, and Barbara Sizemore to name a few.