Skip to main content
Use the right side menu to identify relevant boxes and place requests.

Audiovisual material, circa 1970-2013

 Series

This series documents Maryland Public Television's programming activities from 1970 to 2013, primarily from the mid-1970s to the late 1990s. The series is comprised primarily of master recordings of MPT's educational programs as well as off-air recordings on open-reel film and Betacam, U-Matic, and VHS tape. Selected programs of note represented in this series include State Circle, Wall Street Week, Inside Maryland, and local educational broadcasts and performances originating throughout the state. The series also documents local events in Maryland such as county fairs and geography bees.

The audiovisual series includes digitized recordings of select episodes, available through the University of Maryland Libraries and the American Association of Public Broadcasters as indicated in individual records.

Dates

  • circa 1970-2013

Conditions Governing Access

This series contains audiovisual materials. We do not have the necessary equipment to playback these materials in the Special Collections reading room. If you would like to access these materials, please contact us prior to your visit so that a digital copy can be made.

For items in this series that are available digitally, access to the physical copy is restricted.

Extent

1,172 Reels (1,172 open reel films) ; 1-inch reels

2,748 Videocassettes (2,748 videocassettes including U-Matic, Betacam, Betamax, and VHS)

453 Film Reels : Acetate ; 16mm

2,375 Videocassettes (approximately 2,375 videocassettes (unprocessed))

Arrangement

This series is intellectually arranged by program series title and recording or broadcast date.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Not all film, video, and audio resources are available digitally. To request a digital copy of an audiovisual item, review these policies and guidelines. Contact us with any questions.

Existence and Location of Copies

Select episodes of MPT programming has been digitized by the University of Maryland Libraries and MPT. Some programs can be viewed through the Libraries' Digital Collections (https://digital.lib.umd.edu/), while other programs are available at the American Archive of Public Broadcasting (https://americanarchive.org/).

Processing Information

The majority of the Maryland Public Television audiovisual materials, including film reels and videocassettes, are inventoried at the item level. Inventory work paused, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the temporary closure of library facilities. This inventory includes all 1,172 open reel films as well as 2,748 videocassettes, which represents just over half of the videocassette collection. Videocassettes include U-Matics, Betacam, Betamax, and VHS tapes. 453 films of The Critics' Place clips and outtakes were inventoried and added to the collection in 2023.

Where available, links to digitized recordings of select episodes were added to the inventory.

The films and cassettes arrived to the Libraries in limited order. The processing archivists retained the physical order of materials but intellectually rearranged the materials in alphabetical order for inventory and access purposes.

Library Details

Part of the Special Collections and University Archives

Contact:
University of Maryland Libraries
Hornbake Library
4130 Campus Drive
College Park Maryland 20742
301-405-9212