Lehigh University Libraries Receive the Rodale Archives In the heart of Pennsylvania farm country in Berks County, J.I. Rodale pioneered the health movement in the 1930s by creating the Rodale Institute to pursue science-based organic gardening research full-circle ⎯ from soil, to plant, to people ⎯ to improve the food we eat from the ground up. He also began Rodale Press in the Lehigh Valley and used the publishing company as a vehicle to promote and educate the local and global public about healthy lifestyle choices. His son Robert ’52 and Robert’s wife, Ardath ’94H, developed Rodale Press into Rodale Inc., one of the world’s leading lifestyle publishing companies, and forged ahead with the Rodale Institute, which is thriving today.
In 2018, Rodale Inc. donated the Rodale Archives (shown here) to Lehigh University’s Special Collections. In addition, it provided the financial support to catalog, digitize, and preserve the extensive collection in perpetuity. The Rodale Collection will be used for research, scholarship, and education.
Photos by Christa Neu
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