“We used to have a football team?” “Is it true the volleyball team once had a dog?” “How long has the hockey been a sport on campus?”
Questions regarding campus sports are common at the William H. Hannon Library’s archives and special collections, which organizes and preserves Loyola Marymount University’s documented history. Sports-related items in our collections date back to St. Vincent’s College, founded in 1865 (which would close and be replaced by Loyola College of Los Angeles in 1911) and the foundation for what would eventually become LMU.
Since the earliest days of our school’s history, sports have been part of campus life. In that time, we have collected records by coaches, directors, and the greater campus community, including letters, statistics, game programs, media guides, and flyers. These items from our pre-merger history are now discoverable, along with material through 2009, via a newly created inventory (also known as a “finding aid”) in the Online Archive of California, a statewide database for archival material.
Media guides (sometimes known as a press guides or press kits) and individual game programs are a useful resource when looking into game statistics, schedules, or rosters. These publications were originally created for members of the press covering sporting events and for fans attending games. Together, they provide a snapshot of the coaching staff, individual players, season schedules, and statistics.
The university regularly transfers correspondence from athletics administrators and coaching staff to the University Archives, including information about scheduling, expenses, and changes to individual sports. Those records can also include ephemera such as game tickets and pocket schedules. Fascinating stories have emerged from such correspondence, including one about the university’s refusal to send staff and players to Texas for a 1950 football match when it was discovered that the hotel housing the team enforced segregation.
All of the 41 boxes listed in our finding aid are open to researchers. To see the material for yourself, email special.collections@lmu.edu to schedule an appointment in our reading room.
banner image caption: Yes! According to the 1977 media guide, the volleyball team had a mascot named Feldman Burgers.
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