Sandstone & Tile available for full-text search now
The past issues of Sandstone & Tile, a regular publication of the Stanford Historical Society (SHS), are now preserved in the Stanford Digital Repository (SDR) and available for access and full-text search via Searchworks, Stanford Libraries’ online catalog, and via Spotlight at Stanford exhibits. Readers are able to search the rich content of all the past issues at once using keywords.
The publication originally appeared as the Stanford Historical Society Newsletter and the inaugural issue was published in April, 1976, three months after the founding of the society. This particular issue chronicled the genesis of the society--the “voeux” of a group of close-knit alumni, faculty, staff, and friends.
In addition to serving as a chronicle of the history of the society, the newsletter reported on what was happening in the university--John W. Gardner’s being awarded the Stanford Athletic Board's Distinguished Achievement Medal, an exhibit showing the origin and evolution of Stanford’s architectural design, and published research articles on various aspects of Stanford history.
The society being a “friend of the Archives,” the newsletter invited donations to the University Archives early on and published a list of historical materials of special interest to the Archives, created by then University Archivist Ralph W. Hansen and Assistant University Archivist Roxanne L. Nilan. The close partnership is seen in the publication of “The Stanford Archives in 1976-77: A year of growth and hard work,” excerpts of a report written by Nilan, in the newsletter. This partnership also underscores the recent efforts by former and current archivists Daniel Hartwig and Josh Schneider in preserving the issues in the Stanford Digital Repository and making them accessible and searchable in Searchworks. In addition, the Stanford Archives also showcase the entire collection of past, and ongoing, issues--and enable search across all of them at once--via the Stanford Publications exhibit.
In the second year, the newsletter’s founding editor, Peter C. Allen, launched an annual feature issue, naming it Sandstone & Tile. In 1985, the newsletter was permanently renamed Sandstone & Tile by co-editors Karen Bartholomew and Roxanne Nilan. By then the former newsletter had evolved into a publication consisting of well-researched historical articles in addition to news and announcements. Today Sandstone & Tile is published three times a year, available both in print and online. The wide range of subjects covered in the entire collection includes the 1906 earthquake, the Stanford Medical School, Martin Luther King Jr’s legacy in Stanford, Sam McDonald, creation of Stanford’s banners by chemistry Prof. Eric Hutchinson, and Japanese student relocation during WWII.
Until now, curious readers would need to read the issues to search for specific content. The availability for full-text search via Searchworks provides an eye-opening experience for history lovers to explore in depth the content of this important and growing collection. At the SHS Sandstone & Tile web page, interested readers can find the instructions on how to do a full-text search of all the issues. And if they prefer, readers can either read or download any issue directly through Searchworks. As new issues of Sandstone & Tile are published, they will be added to the collection in the Stanford Digital Repository and made available for access and full-text search.
