Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) records

Collection

Identifier: IWA1333

Staff Only
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Scope and Contents

The IGHSAU records date from 1947 to 1993 and measure 2 linear feet in 5 boxes. The records are arranged in three series: Girls Basketball Scrapbooks, Girls Six on Six Basketball Iowa State Tournament Films, Girls Six on Six Basketball Iowa State Tournament Videocassettes.

The Girls Basketball Scrapbooks series (1948-1970) consists of five boxes of scrapbooks that contain newspaper clippings and other basketball memorabilia.

The Girls Six on Six Basketball Iowa State Tournament Films series (1947-1981) includes 100 reel-to-reel films of state tournament games.

The Girls Six on Six Basketball Iowa State Tournament Videocassettes series (1947-1993) includes 46 videocassettes of state tournament basketball games, both six-on-six and five-on-five.

Dates

Creation: 1947 - 1993

Conditions Governing Access

The records are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright held by the donor has been transferred to the University of Iowa.

However, copyright status for some collection materials may be unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owner. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility and potential liability based on copyright infringement for any use rests exclusively and solely with the user. Users must properly acknowledge the Iowa Women’s Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, as the source of the material. For further information, visit https://www.lib.uiowa.edu/sc/services/rights/

Biographical / Historical

In the 1920s, Iowa was one of the few states that allowed girls to participate in high school basketball, and the sport saw a rise in popularity in the state's rural schools. Larger schools in the state, however, lacked this passion and raised questions about the advantages of girls engaged in physical activity. At the 1925 Iowa State Teachers' Conference, these disagreements came to a head. The annual meeting of superintendents and principals determined that girls' basketball would no longer be a state-sponsored interscholastic activity since competitive sports in front of paying spectators were better suited for boys' activities. They made the decision to establish their own organization. If the Iowa High School Athletic Association, which at the time supervised all high school sporting events, refused to fund female basketball, then they would form the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU).

The IGHSAU formerly oversaw the women-dominated sports of gymnastics, synchronized swimming, and indoor track and field. Basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, track and field, tennis, and volleyball are the sports now managed by the IGHSAU.