Jackie Blanton-Watkins, Associate Professor of Library Science at Kennesaw State University Libraries, took this photo of one of the classics in the world of librariana: the card catalog. She notes that “This card catalog lives on the third floor of the Horace W. Sturgis Library in Kennesaw, Georgia, at Kennesaw State University (KSU). While the age of this card catalog is unknown, there is a property tag for the Southern Technical Institute. Southern Technical Institute was the previous name to Southern Polytechnic State University (SPSU) from 1949 to 1996. SPSU was consolidated into KSU in 2013. The card catalog still holds cards but is primarily used for office supplies and tea bags.”
For more on the history of these paper-based search engines, please see Card Catalog Cabinets by Larry Nix, the project by the University of Virginia to preserve its card catalog, and Chloe Waryan’s recounting of the development of the card catalog. The ALA Archives also offers many delightful historic photos showing how cards catalogs were utilized by library workers and patrons.
