Student discovers treasures in the drawers of the library’s former card catalog
The wall of wooden drawers that line the computer study room in Sterling Memorial Library once held thousands of 3-in. x 5-in. cards. Each card identified one of the thousands of books, pamphlets, periodicals, and other materials in the library’s collection.
From the time of the library’s opening in 1931, the card catalog was an essential tool for students, researchers, and visitors to locate materials in the stack tower and elsewhere by call number. When the library adopted its public-access online catalog, Orbis, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the card catalog became obsolete.
Banks of card catalogs once filled the entire south aisle of the nave. During the library renovation in 2014, most of the card catalogs were removed to open up the space in the nave and create the adjacent study room. This long wall of original drawers was left in place.
Through the years, students and others, including visitors and prospective students, have surreptitiously tucked slips of paper, drawings, and photos in the abandoned drawers. In a recent article in “Yale Daily News,” Baala Shakya ’29, Trumbull College, writes about her discovery of some of the hidden messages that former students have left behind.
Images: Card catalog drawers in Sterling Memorial Library; the contents of drawer 5046; the contents of drawer 5032. Photos by Deborah Cannarella
—Deborah Cannarella