How to Use the BPCL
Pulp magazines are available to view in the BPCL, but be aware of our policies for use.
- Because of their fragile nature, pulp magazines cannot be photocopied or scanned beyond the cover.
- Our hours are more limited than the main floor, but we're open late on Monday and Tuesday.
- We're an archive/repository, so most of our materials cannot be checked out.
- Most of our collection is not open for browsing. You need to request materials at our reference desk with your university ID or a photo ID. You will also need to fill out a request form.
- The reference collection is open for browsing! It's the best place to get started with popular culture research.
- We have a copier/scanner and a planetary scanner available for duplicating materials that cannot be checked out.
Need Help?
3 Ways to Contact Us
We're on the 4th floor of Jerome Library.
Email us at bpcl@libanswers.bgsu.edu.
Call us at 419-372-2450.
What are pulp magazines?
Publication of pulp magazines began in the 1890s and continued for about 60 years. These popular pieces of fiction were made of wood pulp paper with untrimmed edges and were about 7" X 10" in size. Additionally, they had richly illustrated color covers and covered such topics as: adventure stories, detective stories, westerns, romance, sports, and science fiction. They launched the careers of Dashiell Hammett, H.P. Lovecraft, and Isaac Asimov.
This is a selective list of bibliographies, checklists, histories, and critical sources for information about popular fiction in pulp magazines.
Credits
Completed by Dana Sergent, September 1989. Editorial assistance provided by Holly Roddy, Kelly Roddy, Teresa McComber, and Brenda McCallum. Revised and updated by Jenny Piasecki, October 2002, and Regeena Morgan, April 2003. Further revisions by Stefanie Hunker, June 2007 and January 2014.