Searching

Complete the options on the Search screen and then click on the Search button at the bottom of the screen. To start over, click on the Clear button. Further information is available about the following fields:  keyword, subject, sort by, limit to decade, measurements, show # recs.

Keyword
By entering a search term in the keyword field, the search engine will display results of any instances of that word in the summary field. The summary field contains brief descriptions of what is on the item, including the names of people mentioned on letters and postcards.

You may enter more than one word, e.g., Chapman Pond, but only instances where those words appear together will be displayed, as opposed to records that contain either Chapman or Pond.

Do not enter apostrophe's or select both a subject and a keyword.

Subject
RHPL librarians have assigned subject headings to all of the items in the database. To search by subject, click on the down arrow in the subject field to view the current list. Click on a subject to display it in the field. Type the first letter of a subject to jump down the list quickly.

Do not enter both a subject and a keyword. Click on the Clear button to start over.

Sort By
Select the order in which you wish to view the items. The choices are "oldest to newest" and "newest to oldest." Items that are only partially dated will sort to the top of the list. For example, if an item has been identified as being from the 1920s, the date will appear as 192?. It will be treated as an earlier date than one with the entire date, .e.g. 192? will appear before 1921.

Limit to Decade
To see items only from a particular decade, click on the arrow to the right of the "limit to decade" field and select a decade by clicking on it. All items with exact dates, e.g., 1945, and estimated dates where a decade is known, e.g., 194?, will be displayed. The default is to show all items, regardless of decade as indicated by leaving the field blank.

Measurements
Click on the arrow to the right of the measurements field to select between inches or centimeters. The default is inches.

Show # Recs
Choose the number of items to view at a time. The default is 5; change this based on the speed of your connection.