U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, with his backmost to the camera, speaks to reporters astatine the U.S. Capitol successful Washington, D.C., connected Jan. 22, 2014. Photo by: Courtesy of UNR
By Las Vegas Sun Staff (contact)
Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2026 | 2 a.m.
Hundreds of thousands of documents, photographs and artifacts tracing the precocious U.S. Sen. Harry Reid’s vocation are present unfastened to the nationalist astatine UNR, a decennary aft helium donated his papers.
The carnal information of the Harry Reid Papers opened Nov. 1. An grounds opening Nov. 20 volition research however Reid balanced biology extortion with the interests of mining, improvement and agriculture successful a rapidly increasing Nevada.
The postulation documents 46 years of nationalist service, including Reid’s enactment successful Congress and earlier roles arsenic Nevada’s lieutenant politician and president of the Nevada Gaming Commission. It includes idiosyncratic papers, run materials and records of the legislative enactment and constituent services carried retired by his offices.
Reid donated the papers successful 2016, asking that the carnal postulation — much than 1,000 boxes — go disposable 10 years later. The physics records, including a important postulation of constituent-service records, are scheduled to unfastened successful 2036.
“It’s a large university, and I anticipation my papers volition marque it better,” Reid said erstwhile helium announced the donation.
Reid died Dec. 28, 2021, successful Henderson astatine property 82.
The exhibit, “Preserving Nevada: Harry Reid’s Environmental Legacy,” draws connected the postulation and the probe of doctoral campaigner and Reid Fellow Benjamin H. Humphries.
Humphries argues that nary 1 did much during Reid’s 34 years successful Congress to support Nevada’s situation and situation its estimation arsenic a godforsaken wasteland. The grounds examines that grounds alongside the demands of industries and improvement that helped signifier the state.
Reid, a Searchlight autochthonal who served 30 years successful the Senate, led the Democratic bulk from 2007 to 2015. His biology grounds included efforts to sphere Nevada nationalist lands, artifact the projected atomic discarded repository astatine Yucca Mountain and promote cleanable vigor investment.
The archive offers a broader presumption of his career. Records from his Nevada tract offices papers constituent concerns and section issues, portion the largest information of the postulation covers his Senate office’s administrative, legislative and publicity work, on with idiosyncratic materials Reid kept.
Preparing those records for nationalist usage took years. The assemblage hired archivist Ian McGlory successful 2017 to signifier and sphere the carnal collection, which Reid’s unit had prepared for transfer.
Working with pupil employees, McGlory inventoried the materials, organized them by theme, performed insignificant conservation enactment and reviewed the records for duplicates and delicate information. The squad besides created a searchable usher to the collection.
“I deliberation successful retrospect the happening I enjoyed astir is seeing that each of this enactment is done astatine the extremity of the time by radical moving together,” McGlory said successful a assemblage statement. “Government is often synonymous with being faceless, erstwhile successful the world it’s the opposite: It’s radical helping people.”
The papers are the largest postulation held by UNR’s Special Collections and University Archives, according to outreach and nationalist services archivist Elspeth Olson. She recommends that researchers place circumstantial areas of involvement earlier visiting alternatively than effort to browse the full archive.
The grounds volition stay connected show connected the 3rd level of the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center done the extremity of March.
An opening reception and postulation motorboat volition tally from 3 to 5 p.m. Nov. 20. The programme begins astatine 3 p.m., with remarks by University Libraries Dean Catherine Cardwell, Humphries and Olson, the exhibit’s curator. Exhibit viewing and refreshments statesman astatine 4 p.m.
Registration is requested by Nov. 18. Participants tin registry to be in person oregon online via Zoom.
Researchers tin consult the papers successful Special Collections and University Archives connected the Knowledge Center’s 3rd floor. The section accepts drop-in visits Monday done Thursday, with Fridays reserved for beforehand appointments. A searchable postulation usher is available online.
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