Subject Guide
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Our inventories begin with the most general descriptions of our collections. Each gives the title of the collection, a general characterization of it with the span of dates for the documents in it, an indication of its extent, a note about restrictions, a biographical or historical note, a paragraph of description indicating what the collection contains, and the collection code associated with it.
These descriptions use linear measure to indicate extent of each collection. Linear measure simply indicates how much shelf space a collection takes up. If a collection amounts to five linear inches, it fills a box that is five inches deep; the other dimensions of the box generally accomodate letter-size or legal-size paper. It is sometimes useful to imagine how many filing cabinets larger collections would fill. If a file drawer holds about two linear feet of documents, then a collection that extends to 160 linear feet would fill 80 file drawers or 20 four-drawer filing cabinets.
If more detailed inventories exist, they follow the general description. For an outline of the collection, pull down the bottom margin of the grey frame near the top. Click on a line in the outline to go to the corresponding part of the inventory.