This past October, Digital Collections Librarian Lisa Lamont launched two new digital collections: The University Archives Photograph Collection and Works Progress Administration Murals in California. The University Archives Photograph Collection is comprised of over 30,000 photographs, glass negatives, and slides which document campus events, student life, architecture, people, and academics in the University's history. The images from the University's days as a normal school and lab school provide an especially intriguing look at our heritage. Over 2400 images currently have searchable metadata, and more will be continually added as Lisa and new Metadata Librarian Daniel Jergovich complete descriptions of each photo.The WPA Murals in California project, funded by a 2007 University Grant, compiles stunning images of these historic murals found in post offices, libraries, and other public places around the state.
Both collections can be viewed in Luna, an imaging database which requires the user to unblock pop-up windows. After clicking on each collection's Luna icon, click search in the lefthand menu, then by keyword. Type in your keyword, then browse the results in the main window. Clicking on an image here opens this image in a new window, where you can zoom in and explore in depth. Click on the image data icon to see the descriptive metadata for the image.
The next digital collection at SDSU will be the John and Jane Adams Trade Card Collection, featured in the Fall 2008 edition of Primary Source. We plan to launch this collection in Spring 2009. Keep an eye on the SCUA homepage for more details!