# Source: University of Utah Node 4 History

**Type:** source
**Status:** Useful
**Confidence:** Medium
**Source Type:** Official University Article
**URL:** https://it.utah.edu/node4/posts/2017/august/node4-history.php
**Publisher:** University Information Technology, University of Utah
**Accessed:** 2026-06-18
**Updated:** 2026-06-18

## Summary

The University of Utah UIT "Node 4" article explains the name of the university's IT news channel by recounting the University's role as the fourth ARPANET node.

## Useful Claims

- The article says the University of Utah Computer Science Department became the fourth node of ARPANET in 1969.
- It describes ARPANET as the world's first packet-switching computer network and a precursor of today's internet.
- It links the claim to the University's institutional memory and points readers to Marriott Library's ARPANET project.
- The article is useful for the local Utah claim but is explicitly archived and may have stale external links.

## Reliability Notes

This is an official University of Utah article and is good evidence for the institution's own public framing of the Node 4 claim. It should be strengthened with primary ARPA, BBN, UCLA/SRI/UCSB/Utah network maps, or archival documents before the work page is promoted beyond Draft.

## Related Pages

- [University of Utah ARPANET Fourth Node](arpanet-fourth-node.md)
- [University of Utah Computer Graphics Program](utah-computer-graphics-program.md)