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Stephan Archives

The Lawrenceville School Archives appraises, collects, organizes, describes, preserves, and makes available School and School-related records of permanent administrative, legal, fiscal, and historical value in order to support the School's educational mission.

Beginning Your Research

To contact the Archives with a research request, please complete the following form. You'll be asked for some information about your research needs and if you are requesting publication rights. After you've submitted the form, a member of the Archives team will reach out to you to get started.

Archives Research and Publication Request Form

Research Tips

How is doing research in an archive different from other library research?

Archival materials are generally:

  • Unpublished (letters, memos, record books, diaries, notes, etc.)
  • Unique, one-of-a-kind, single items
  • Often handwritten, so prepare to spend time deciphering
  • Old and in fragile condition
  • Not organized by subject, but by who created them. Ex: Head of School's papers, papers created by various clubs
  • Limited by the collection policy of the archives
  • Used only in the archives reading room and cannot be checked out or removed
  • Stored in special conditions to limit deterioration

Tips for doing research in an archive:

  • Do background research on your topic so that you have an idea what sort of collection you might find information in. An organization’s records? A personal collection? What archives might have such a collection? The Lawrenceville School archives have only things related to Lawrenceville.
  • Remove only one folder at a time and use acid-free paper markers to mark the place where you removed a particular item.
  • Keep everything in order as you find it, both folders and items within those folders.
  • Handle items carefully. Most are one of a kind!
  • If you are looking at unsleeved photos or very old documents, you may be asked to wear white gloves (available from the archivist) to protect them from damage.

Collections

The following collections are included in the materials held in the archives. For more detailed resources, visit our Archives Catalog. For material currently available digitally, links are provided below.

School yearbook, The Olla Podrida, from 1885 – present.
 

School newspapers, The Graduate (1881), The Record (1881-1886), and The Lawrence (1886 – present). Digital copies from 1881-2017. Note that digital copies of The Lawrence are suppressed for five years. 

Alumni magazine, The Lawrentian, from 1906 (as The Alumni Bulletin) – present. Digital copies from 1937-2021. Note that Class Notes are suppressed online for five years. 
 

Other publications, including The Lit, various student magazines, and school catalogs.
 
Rare books written by or about Lawrentians (Lawrenceville Authors Special Collections).
 
Photographs of the school, faculty, students, alumni, and events.
Video footage of school events in various formats.
 
Recordings, including choral performances, community meetings, and guest speakers.
 
Documents from various school departments, organizations, and alumni.
 
3-D artifacts, including school memorabilia.
 
Architectural plans and maps of campus.
 
Student records for most students dating from c. 1905 through recent graduates. Please note that access to the student records are restricted for the life of the student and 80 years post the student’s class graduation date.

Archives Policies