Seattle Public Schools  Archives

Mission

Chronicling the history of the Seattle Public Schools:

• School boards
• Superintendents
• Architecture and Buildings
• Curriculum and Instruction
• Student Life

Collections - What we have

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Our collection consists of published printed materials, manuscripts and ephemera along with administrative records or files, photos, and artifacts such as scrapbooks, trophies, art, banners. 
Collection Description

Unpublished, printed material, manuscripts and ephemera is available in the archivies.  Research studies, analysis, case studies, school histories, district annual reports and directories can be searched through our library database, or browse by titles.  Current data and reports can be found on the District's Research and Evaluation Reports web page.

The district has an extensive photo collection dating from the 1890's - to the present which documents topics such as  class photos, athletic, club photos, building and grounds, music programs, special events, and school field trips.  A few of the photos have been digitized and can be found on our flicker site Digital Photos .   A partial list of photograph descriptions is provided to help you find  specific photographs. 

Photograph Collection Description

• Schools Adams - Duwamish Bend
• Schools Eckstein - Kimball
• Schools Lafayette - Queen Anne
• Schools Rainier Beach -  Youngstown

The Archives also has a collection of administrative files including:

• School Board (1882 - present) minutes, indexes, correspondence, email, public hearings and administrative documents

• Superintendent's Office (1901 - present) administrative working files, reading files, news clippings, media collections, historic litigation case files, equity and race relations.

• Architectural drawings, renderings, building construction photographs and other administrative files related to facility planning, capacity management, school closure and environmental compliance.

• Curriculum and Instruction  text book selection, committee reports and other administrative records.  It includes a small collection of historical school text books, including those published by the Seattle Public school district.
  

• Yearbooks/Annuals Collections *updated from Fall Inventory 2012

Current Initiatives

We partner with schools, alumni associations and the Washington State Archives to preserve information and make it more acessible:

• Making more information available digitally including scanning photos and archival paper records. 
• Preserve fragile materials, such as school newspapers or student literary 'zines, by making digital copies. 

Resources

We can provide trained researchers to help you research the collections for $20.00 per hour.  To connect with an archivist for more information about the collections and to make an appointment to do the research yourself, please email the archivist or phone (206) 252-0797

The cost for scanning photos or other materials that are currently not in a digital format is $5.00 per photo/page.  You may photograph materials in the archives or order photocopies at a cost of 15 cents per page. 

If you have memorabilia that you would like to donate to the Archives, the Archives collects materials that represent Seattle Public Schools history. This includes photographs, published documents, and any memorabilia that relates directly to the history of our schools or our District. Contact the archives manager and use this form to Donate memorabilia to the archives.  Our address is Seattle Public Schools Archive,
2445 3rd Ave South, P.O. Box 34165, Seattle WA 98124-1165