The College's oral history project provides researchers with a rich and varied perspective on Dartmouth during the twentieth century. The oral history interviews collected and maintained by the Archives cover a wide range of topics associated with the history of Dartmouth. Narrators include past presidents, trustees, faculty, administrators and staff, and alumni. These interviews serve as a rich supplement to the College records maintained by the Archives. In addition to the interviews collected by the oral history project, other oral history interviews have been deposited with the Archives from a variety of donors including students, alumni, faculty, etc.

The Dartmouth College Oral History Collections are currently comprised of the following:

Dartmouth College Presidents

Dickey, John Sloan (1907-1991)
Oral history of the twelfth president of Dartmouth College (1945-1970), Dartmouth College Oral History Project, interviewed by Jere Daniell periodically during 1975-1978. Partial transcript with index and original sound recording available in Rauner Library; partial transcript with index available online.

Freedman, James Oliver (1935-2006)
Oral history about the fifteenth president of Dartmouth College (1987-1998), Dartmouth College Oral History Project. Interviews currently underway. Closed until June 2023.

Hopkins, Ernest Martin (1877-1964)
Oral history of the eleventh president of Dartmouth College (1916-1945), Dartmouth College Oral History Project, interviewed by Edward Connery Lathem, 1958-1964. Original sound recording and partial transcript available in Rauner Library.

Kemeny, John George (1926-1992)
Oral history of the thirteenth president of Dartmouth College (1970-1981), Dartmouth College Oral History Project, interviewed by A. Alexander Fanelli, 1984. Transcript with index and original sound recording available in Rauner Library; transcript with index and sound clips available online.

McLaughlin, David Thomas (1932-2004)
Oral history of the fourteenth president of Dartmouth College (1981-1987), Dartmouth College Oral History Project, interviewed by Jane Carroll, 1996-1997. Closed until June 2012.

Faculty, trustees and administrators of Dartmouth College

Oral history interviews with faculty, trustees and administrators of Dartmouth College, collected periodically since the 1970s to the present time, Dartmouth College Oral History Project.

Dartmouth Medical Community

History of Dartmouth Medicine
Oral history interviews with members of the Dartmouth medical community, interviewed by Dr. Louis B. Matthews, Jr., 1987-1989.

Department of Pediatrics
Oral histories of members of the Department of Pediatrics of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, formerly Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital, interviewed by Jean Hamlin (Class of 2007), 2005-2006.

The War Years at Dartmouth

Oral histories collected from members of the classes of the 1940s at Dartmouth documenting their undergraduate experiences at Dartmouth before, during and after World War Two.  Interviewed by Mary Donin beginning in 2007 and ongoing. Original sound recordings will be available soon in Rauner Library and online.