There are a number of student publications which are rich sources of information about students and student life. Since the late 1960s, students have frequently produced newspapers and other publications, including literary and creative journals, without official college sanction. The earliest student publication in the University Archives is the Owl, consisting of one issue published in 1854 by students. To find out which issues the library owns, where they are located, and if they are available online, you can search the Library Catalog. When electronic versions of student publications are available via Swem Library's Special Collections, the newspapers, magazines, and other publications can be found in the Communities in DSpace section of the W&M Digital Archive. Material related to the Law School is available at the William & Mary Law School Scholarship Repository.
The Flat Hat: In 1911 the student newspaper, The Flat Hat, was first published, and since then has announced and documented campus events and reflected student opinion. While not the first student newspaper at William and Mary, it is the longest lived.
Literary magazines have been published by students at William and Mary since 1890. The earliest one, the College Monthly, included information about campus events and alumni news in addition to poems and stories until about 1911. Later issues continued to carry news about alumni, editorials, and occasional articles about student life. Other publications in the Archives also contain extensive information relating to student organizations. Student handbooks, student government handbooks, College catalogs, the Alumni Gazette, and publicity materials and programs for specific events sponsored by student groups all provide in-depth documentation of the history and activities of students and student organizations.
ADDITIONAL STUDENT NEWSPAPERS AND JOURNALS
To find more College of William and Mary publications, users will find the always in-progress list in the SCRC Wiki helpful.
Use this strategy to find periodicals and newspapers published both by and about W&M in the Library Catalog:
Use this strategy to find periodicals and newspapers that are only about W&M:
To narrow your search results, try search strategies such as:
STUDENT NEWSPAPERS FROM OTHER UNIVERSITIES
Cornell University has a listing of other student newspapers available online with a particular emphasis on the digitization of backfiles.
William & Mary Alumni Gazette and William & Mary Alumni Magazine:
The University Archives attempts to obtain at least one copy of each publication issued by a campus office or organization. While this is not, of course, completely possible, the Archives contains an extensive collection of twentieth-century materials, and has a number of publications back to the early 1800s. The historically important W&M catalogs run from 1829 to the present, with gaps, and the earliest commencement program is dated 1831.
Other important published sources of information about the college include: campus directories, student handbooks, student and faculty speeches, Charter Day programs, departmental newsletters, annual reports, publicity brochures, materials for prospective students, affirmative action reports, fliers announcing up-coming fraternity parties, news releases, athletic programs, cultural events calendars, play programs, and student newspapers. There are some scattered publications from the various branch and extension colleges which have been affiliated with William and Mary. Material related to the Law School is available at the William & Mary Law School Scholarship Repository.
Principal Faculty and Staff Publications
ADDITIONAL FACULTY AND STAFF NEWSPAPERS AND JOURNALS
Use this strategy to find all periodicals and newspapers published both by and about W&M in the Library Catalog:
Use this strategy to find periodicals and newspapers that are only about W&M:
Several nationally-distributed scholarly journals have been produced at William and Mary, such as the William and Mary Quarterly (a journal about Virginia history, not just College of William and Mary history), Eighteenth-Century Life, and the William and Mary Law Review.
Since the late 1960s, students have frequently produced newspapers and other publications, including literary and creative journals, without official college sanction. The earliest student publication in the University Archives is the Owl, consisting of one issue published in 1854 by students. The satirical and humorous Fat Head, distributed by The Flat Hat writers, has been in existence since at least 1939. The Archives also keeps copies of other newspapers such as the DOG Street Journal and the Virginia Informer. When electronic versions of student publications are available from Special Collections, they can be found in the Communities in DSpace section of the W&M Digital Archive.
Posters announcing events and activities on campus can be found in the University Archives Poster Collection. They are a good representation of activities and visitors to campus as well as the relative sophistication of student-produced works.