SLRC Treasures: Humanities

The Humanities Department has a run of the Baltimore/Washington edition of the TV Guide from 1957 to the current issue, in paper. These are wonderful for the covers alone, remembering Father Knows Best, I Love Lucy, The Carol Burnett Show, The Man from UNCLE, and others. If you need to know the listing for a local program or just want to take a walk down memory lane, this collection is a great place to start.

Interested in an 1854 Italian English Dictionary? A pronouncing dictionary of Gaelic?A Hopi/English-English/Hopi dictionary?Or Yoruba/English? Want to look up a word in Middle English or see how Samuel Johnson defined “Lexicographer?” How about tracing the etymology of a Russian word or looking at a 1700 page Chinese dictionary from 1925? If you ask for bouji while in Haiti, what will happen? The Brothers Grimm compiled an historical dictionary of German, if you’d like to explore the history of that language. The Humanities Department has language dictionaries for most known languages and will be glad to share the information in them!

SLRC Treasures: Business, Science & Technology Department

Probably the greatest hidden treasure of the Business, Science, and Technology (BST) Department at Maryland's State Library Resource Center is the collection of old department store catalogs, including Sears (1897-1993), Wards (1922-1985), and Penney’s (1984-2002). These catalogs allow you to walk down memory lane and see the styles and prices of the old days. Sears used to sell just about everything from clothing and furniture to pure-bred dogs and houses.

BST also owns a fantastic collection of old car shop manuals that date from 1929-1988 and owner’s manuals that range from 1913-1984. These manuals are great for people trying to restore a classic car, and the cars they cover include the Model T, Studebaker, Edsel, Reo Speedwagon, as well as the more common makes and models.

If you’re interested in historical business information, BST has old business directories, such as the Thomas Register (1925-2005), Moody’s Manuals, which also give financial information, (1900-present), and Best’s Insurance Reports (1915-present). The department also carries Jane’s Fighting Ships (1898-present) and Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft (1915-present).

The most important treasure in BST, however, is its crack staff of librarians, who will find your answer!

SLRC Treasures: African American Department

The African American Department has a wealth of hidden treasures! For starters, the collection contains several rare and out of print books, dating back to the 1800s. Some of these books are so fragile that they have to be kept in a secure location and handled with extreme care.

We also have an extensive autographed book collection including the signatures of prominent Americans such as Gordon Parks, Lena Horne, John Hope Franklin and Langston Hughes. Our ephemera file has hundreds of brochures, transcripts, playbills, funeral programs and more. A significant amount focuses on the events and accomplishments of Marylanders.

The African American Department also maintain a large set of colorful drawings, posters, photographs and reproductions depicting the rich history and pioneers of African American culture.

SLRC Treasures: Children's Department

There is a number of “hidden treasures” in the Children’s Department. We have a vast selection of retrospective as well as historical books. Some are first editions and some are autographed. We carry Children’s Literature Review for those looking for critical commentary about authors and books.

Did you know that the Children's Department has 49 versions of Cinderella or Cinderella-like tales from around the world? Many different versions of narrated or illustrated fairy tales are available from the Children's Department.