Boston College University Archives

How do I come see the material listed on this guide in-person?

How do I search the library catalog?

Where do I start with genealogical research?

Are Newton College of the Sacred Heart Yearbooks available online?

Do you have the Boston College Stylus?

How do I find out about the history of BC athletics?

How do I find a Boston College dissertation or thesis?

Where can I find old issues of university newspapers?

How do I find out facts and statistics about BC?

Do you have published histories of specific organizations? 

How does the Newton College of the Sacred Heart relate to Boston College? 

Does the University Archives have student records? 

Can I find student grades?

How do I find out if and when somebody attended or graduated BC?

What is a finding aid?

Do you have my professor's papers?

Can I find information about a member of the BC faculty (Jesuit or Lay)?

Where do I find photos of students?

How can I find photos of events?

Do you have a photo of a team, athlete, coach, or athletic venue? 

Where can I find photographs of student clubs or organizations? 

Is there information about men who were enrolled in the Student Army Training Corps (SATC) at Boston College in 1918?

Do you have information on Doug Flutie or the Miracle in Miami?

Can I get a copy of the "Dear Jackie Letter?"

Are there records of intramural/club sports within Athletics records?

Do you have film or video of Boston College athletics?

How can I learn about an individual BC athlete or coach?

What newspapers and magazines covered Boston College athletics?

Can't find your question? Ask us!

• Do you have my professor's papers?
  • Collections of faculty papers are held in Burns Library. Search for specific collections in the library catalog.
• Does the University Archives have student records? 
  • We have no student records available for research use, but we do recommend strategies to find information in yearbooks, student newspapers, photograph collections, athletic photographs and programs, and other available sources.
• Can I find student grades?
  • We have no student records available for research use, but we do recommend strategies to find information in yearbooks, student newspapers, photograph collections, athletic photographs and programs, and other available sources.
• How do I find out if and when somebody attended or graduated BC?
  • We can’t guarantee that you’ll find evidence of graduation in the Archives, but there are some sources you can check:
    • Most grads appear in the yearbook (1913-). Students who left before completing degrees are sometimes listed as “ex-men.”
    • Women earned graduate degrees from Boston College beginning in 1926. They entered the School of Nursing in 1947 and the School of Education – BC’s first fully co-educational School – in 1952. The university itself became fully coeducational when women were admitted to the School of Arts and Sciences in 1970.
    • Most grads are listed in commencement programs (1877-), but these are not digitized and the collection has some gaps.
    • The course catalog, the Boston College Bulletin (1868/69-) includes names of students (years) and alumni (in some volumes through 1915), along with end-of-year prize-winners.
    • BC’s student newspapers can be searched online for references that might narrow the dates of attendance.
• What is a finding aid?
  • A finding aid is a document that lists all of the contents of a collection.
• Can I find information about a member of the BC faculty (Jesuit or Lay)?
  • Most strategies for finding a student in our Genealogy Research page will also  work for faculty.
  • Boston College faculty and staff photographs, 1872-2012.
• Where do I find photos of students?
  • View our Photographs page
  • The best source for finding an individual is the yearbook, Sub Turri. You can find it online (1913-2009). Look for senior portraits, team, club, and candid photographs in the year they graduated and the previous few years. If you prefer to see a hard copy or need a year that is not online, a complete set of Sub Turri is available in Burns Library. O'Neill Library also has copies of Sub Turri from 1989 to the present. (Level 4; Call Number LD478 .S8.)
    • If they were athletes, photographs can be found in the archival collections Boston College athletic photographs and Boston College athletic programs. They include players and coaches, teams, and game-day photographs. Athletic programs include annual media guides, and individual game programs. Both collections can be requested at the Burns Library, but many photographs are also online.
• Is there information about men who were enrolled in the Student Army Training Corps (SATC) at Boston College in 1918?
  • There is some information along with photos and lists of faculty and enrollees in the book Boston College in the World War.
• How can I find photos of events?
  • The best places to find photographs are the yearbook, Sub Turri (senior class portraits, student organization, team, and candid photographs), student newspapers, and Archives photograph collections. See our Photographs page as well.
• Do you have a photo of a team, athlete, coach, or athletic venue? 
  • Try our Photographs or Athletics page
  • In the Athletic Photographs collection you’ll find photographs of individuals, teams and other groups of student athletes, along with games, practices, and events.
  • The yearbook, Sub Turri, usually includes team photographs, with some individual player and game-day images. Spring sports, when included, are often in a separately issued spring supplement. 
  • Athletic Programs also include photos, information, and articles about athletes, staff, marching band, venues, and other related topics. They are not online.
  • The Heights and other newspapers include sports photographs. [Co-Education includes photos of women’s basketball]
  • The book Athletics at Boston College (1943) by Nathaniel Hasenfus includes many photos.
  • Photos of athletic fields and venues are found in Boston College Building and Campus Images.
• Do you have information on Doug Flutie or the Miracle in Miami?
  • There is a small Doug Flutie collection which includes publications, periodical clippings, ephemera and artifacts focusing primarily upon Flutie's achievements as a Boston College quarterback.
• Can I get a copy of the "Dear Jackie Letter?"
  • Request scans through Search Burns Archives from the Commander John J. Shea Collection.
• Where can I find photographs of student clubs or organizations?
  • They are depicted or listed in the yearbook, Sub Turri. Our photograph collections may also include them.
• Are there records of intramural/club sports within Athletics records?
  • Some are included with Athletics collections, but also use strategies to find student clubs and organizations.
• Do you have film or video of Boston College athletics?
  • No. There is no film or video of athletics available to researchers in the Boston College Archives.
• How can I learn about an individual BC athlete or coach?
  • Search for the name in the Libraries’ catalog/website and in the photograph collection finding aid, using nicknames or alternate spellings to widen your search. Alumni papers include collections of material about some athletes.
• What newspapers and magazines covered Boston College athletics?
  • Boston College student newspapers and alumni publications; local newspapers including the Boston Globe and Boston Herald.