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What are The Archives at Stevenson University?

Welcome!

The Archives at Stevenson University serve to collect, conserve, and preserve the history of Stevenson University as well as the history of the Greenspring Valley and the Jones Falls Watershed.  In addition, the Archives perform the same mission for historic materials which supplement Stevenson's degree programs.  While archives generally serve as document repositories, Stevenson is proud that its archives are positioned as laboratory for learning and fully integrated into our curriculum.

The Archives consist of four major collections and several smaller collections.  The first collection is that of the University itself.  Within that collection reside documents and artifacts documenting the growth of the University from its founding in 1947 as a small, religious, girls school devoted to vocational training to that of an independent university of nearly 4,000 students dedicated to a career-oriented education within a liberal arts environment.  Stevenson University Archives do not retain all of the University's records.  Instead, only those records and artifacts of historical importance find their way into our collection.

The second collection consists of documents belonging to the Maryland Bible Society that have been placed in Stevenson's custodial care.  This collection consists of documents from the Maryland Bible Society as well as the Washington City Bible Society and serves to document important aspects of the social history of Baltimore (1810-today) as well as the City of Washington in the District of Columbia (1828-1997).

The Hollinger Collection, our third collection, is comprised by the papers of Maryland State Senator Paula C. Hollinger (1940-  ) who served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from 1979-1987 and as State Senator from 1987-2007.  The collection contains information about legislation with which Hollinger was involved from 1979-2006.  The primary focus of Hollinger's legislation was healthcare and the collection documents healthcare reform efforts in Maryland for more than 25 years.

The fourth collection is the Beauchesne Collection.  This unique collection of nearly 100 volumes comprises nearly half the original school library of the Hannah More Academy in Reisterstown, MD.  The first Episcopal boarding school for young women in the United States, the Academy was founded in 1834 and operated until 1974. 

Some of the more interesting items contained in the Stevenson Archives are:

  • the original ledger maintained by the founding Sisters of Notre Dame, written in longhand, listing the expenses incurred as well as tuition
  • photographic portraits of graduates from the 1950′s and beyond
  • the Maryland Bible Society's first edition King James "He" Bible from 1611 as well as engraving's from a Theatrum Biblicum of 1674
  • volumes of Harpers magazine from the Civil War era
  • organizational records of both the Maryland and Washington City Bible societies documenting life in the Chesapeake region in the early to mid- 19th century.  

The Archives at Stevenson University are maintained in a sophisticated, physically secure environment, that is controlled for temperature, humidity, and ultraviolet light.

If you are a Stevenson staff or faculty member, student, or alumnus, and you have material that “tells the story of Stevenson,” please think about donating your material in order to preserve it for future generations.

If you are a SU student looking for experience working with archival material as an intern, we are interested in you!  In the last two years we have hosted six undergraduate interns, two longtime volunteers, and a work study student as well. Some of the tasks that need to be completed are accessioning items into our Past Perfect V electronic database, boxing items, scanning photographs, photographing artifacts and books, recording interviews with both digital audio and video equipment, editing interviews and oral histories, and transcribing documents.

Arrangements can be made to meet with The Archivist, or to conduct archival research by appointment only.  Please contact the Archivist at gjohnston@stevenson.edu.