The Fourth Estate: A History of the Earliest Student Publications at the University of Oregon
![Early staff of the Oregon Daily Emerald (UA REF 3, Box 92, Folder 24)](https://blogs.uoregon.edu/scua/files/2015/07/UARef3_b0092_f0024_0001-17uw808-300x260.jpg)
For the first fifteen years of the University of Oregon’s existence, the campus was without any student publications. During this nascent phase of the university’s development, though, the framework that would eventually lead to the proliferation of student newsletters, newspapers, and magazines was erected. The early formation of literary societies was critical in catalyzing the rise of student publications, and the early publications set a precedent for independent journalism for more than a century. Today’s post illuminates the early efforts of students to bring news and commentary to print, focusing on the first publications created by the UO student body.