Library System

Sanborn® fire insurance maps are detailed property and land-use records covering more than 12,000 U.S. towns and cities.

The maps provide information, such as building outline, size and shape, construction materials, height, building use, windows and doors, street and sidewalk widths, boundaries, house numbers, and more. The plans often include information and shading for steel beams or reinforced walls, plus symbols for stables, garages, warehouses, etc.

Factories are labeled with the owner’s name, as well as the products manufactured there. In large industrial and commercial buildings, even individual rooms and their uses are recorded. Also depicted are pipelines, railroads, wells, water mains, dumps, and heavy machinery likely to affect the property’s vulnerability to earthquake, fire, and flood.

On August 17, the Shiffman Medical Library building closed to undergo a complete renovation as part of the Wayne State University’s School of Medicine Richard J. Mazurek M.D. Education Commons.

To keep service interruptions to all WSU patrons to a minimum, we have set up three temporary service sites of operation:

Shiffman Library @ Scott Hall Room 2367

Shiffman Library @ Rackham Building
Service site will open September 4, 2007
60 Farnsworth (Woodward and Warren)
Room 044 (lower level)

We suggest that patrons and colleagues contact us in advance of visiting any of our temporary service sites as access to publications and many information services can be provided electronically or via telephone.

For more information about each of the temporary sites, and what is available, please visit: http://www.lib.wayne.edu/help/hours_med.php#shiffclosing

The Wayne State University Technology Resource Center (TRC), a collaboration between Computing and Information Technology, Library Computing and Media Services and the Office for Teaching and Learning, has made listening to lectures more convenient than ever by offering a Podcasting feature to all professors that record their classroom lectures.

“This makes listening to lectures more convenient and offers mobility to students – now they can just download the lecture and listen to it on their mp3 players no matter where they are,” said Dina Mein, director of Library Computing and Media Services and interim director of the Office for Teaching and Learning.

When placing an order with Media Services, professors may select to have the lecture streamed through the Library System Course Reserves, or if they would prefer it to be made available as an mp3 file that can be “podcasted” to mp3 audio players. Students can access the podcast through a link that the professor provides. “The recording is still done the same way,” said Matt Decker, Library Computing and Media Services manager. “All professors have to do is let us know how they’d like it to be available.”

For more information on the podcasting project or to learn how to podcast a lecture at Wayne State, contact Media Services at (313) 577-1980.

Beginning Monday, August 20 and extending through Labor Day weekend, the hours for Purdy/Kresge Library, the Science and Engineering Library and the Undergraduate Library will be:

Monday-Friday 8am to 6pm
Saturday 9am to 5pm
Sunday 11pm to 7pm

The Oakland Center Library Services Center will be closed.