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How to Find Photographs at the H. Furlong Baldwin Library Using the Internet

Please keep in mind that most of what you find will be descriptions of photographs, not actual images, since most of our collection is not digitized.  Where digital copies exist, there are links from the webpages as appropriate.

A. General Online Images

If you just want to look at some online images, browse the Collections Cross-Section –there are about 2,200 images available here.  You also can check online images from the Numbered Photograph Collections, but be advised, these are not as well-organized as the Collections Cross-Section.

B. Keyword Search

If you are looking for images on a specific subject and are certain of one or two keywords (a name, a place, an activity) which could narrow the search, Search Library Web Pages for keywords. This will search all our online photograph finding aids, including the Numbered Photograph Collections, the Subject Vertical File, the Portrait Vertical File, the BCLM Collection, and the Cased Photographs.

Here are two hints for using our webpage search engine:

1. If you want to search for more than one word, you must connect the words with AND in capital letters; otherwise, it will give you every webpage that has any of the words you want, not just those that have all the words you want.

2. If you want to do another search, always return to the page that lists the “Search Options” and make sure that “Search All Photograph Inventories, Guides, and Finding Aids” is checked. Otherwise, it will only search general Library webpages, which is its default setting.

C. Subject Browse Search

If you are looking for images of a specific subject, but don't know what keywords to use, you could

1. Browse the finding aid for the Subject Vertical File

2. Browse the finding aids for Numbered Collections By

D. People Search

If you are looking for images of specific people by name,

1. The best thing is to Search Library Web Pages for the person's last name using the search engine, since there are photographs of people in just about every photograph collection we have.

2. Alternatively, you can browse

a. The Portrait Vertical File

b. The Cased Photographs

E. Place Search

If you are looking for images of a specific place—a building, street, or geographic area:

1. The best thing is to Search Library Web Pages using the search engine. Try the building name, names of streets, neighborhoods, towns, cities, counties.

2. Alternatively, you can browse

a. The Collections Cross-Section for Baltimore or for different regions of Maryland

b. The Subject Vertical File for individual counties or towns

c. The Subject Index to the Numbered Photograph Collections for buildings, towns, or counties