On Monday, October 2, the University of Maryland Libraries will be releasing phase one of the UMD Student Newspapers database,https://www.lib.umd.edu/univarchives/student-newspapers

The database, which covers issues from 1910 to 1971 from the Diamondback and its predecessor newspapers, provides both keyword and date access to article titles and content. Users can search names and topics across all the issues, as well as focusing in on a particular day, month, or year of publication or publication title. Content can also be isolated in an individual issue and saved as a jpg file, using the clipping tool provided on the website. A more detailed explanation of the database functions appears on the website’s About page.

This is truly a transformational project for the University of Maryland Archives, allowing current students, faculty, and staff, UMD alumni, and anyone anywhere in the world who is interested in the history of the University of Maryland ready access to the primary student newspaper whose coverage of events provides an invaluable perspective on campus, national, and international events, issues, individuals, and organizations.

Much of this work was funded by a Launch UMD campaign in 2015. Beginning November 1, we will undertake a second Launch UMD campaign to raise the funds needed to complete the digitization of all remaining issues and to ensure that the hard copy of the paper will continue to be digitized as long as it is published; the campaign will conclude on December 13.

I hope you will enjoy searching these issues of the paper and can include a brief not about this project in an upcoming newsletter.

Thank you in advance for your assistance in publicizing this digital initiative.

Anne Turkos