Digital reserves in the RetroSeasons Sports Library are texts from our print collection that have been converted to electronic format and made available at https://www.retroseasons.com/library/.  

Users can borrow and read digital copies for two hours with a real-time waitlist, if necessary. In line with best practices for controlled digital lending, there are no download or print privileges available, and the print text copy is securely stored on-site and is not allowed to circulate.  

Users can borrow and read digital copies for two hours with a real-time waitlist, if necessary. In line with best practices for controlled digital lending (CDL), there are no download or print privileges available, and the original print copy is securely stored on-site and is not allowed to circulate. Additionally, certain images used to represent these publications are provided under the principles of the First Sale Doctrine, which permits the lawful resale and lending of physical copies. These images are used solely to visually describe the item and are shared in good faith under fair use, ensuring compliance with copyright laws while enhancing access to historical materials.

All of the publications in the RetroSeasons Sports Library were published in the United States and fall under U.S. copyright laws. Details on the different stages of copyright and access to digital copies of the publications are described below.

Individual Pages

Images of pages provided on this site are original photographs of the physical publication or pages being offered for sale. They are intended solely to visually describe the item’s condition, contents, and authenticity. As the owner of this physical copy, the listing is made under the principles of the First Sale Doctrine, which allows for the resale of lawfully purchased items. The photographs are shared in good faith under fair use, as they serve a limited, non-exploitative purpose of informing prospective buyers of the details of the historic content.

Details on copyright in relation to the First Sale Doctrine are available at the U. S. Department of Justice.

A baseball publication from 1910, an example of a public domain content

1929 and earlier: Public Domain

Generally speaking, copyright on publications lasts for 95 years. As such, as of the year 2025, books and other periodicals published on or before December 31, 1929 are now in the public domain. They are free to view and use without restriction in our sports library.

Details on copyright terms and the public domain are available at the Cornell Law Library.

A football publication from 1936, an example of a content with potential expired copyright

1929-1963: Expired Copyright

Content published after 1923, but before 1964, needed to be manually renewed every 28 years to avoid copyright expiration. If the copyright expired, the publication was released to the Public Domain and may be viewed in our sports library without restriction. Publications that renewed their copyright have certain restrictions but are often available to view digitally for a short period of time in our sports library by way of Controlled Digital Lending.

More information on this expiration period is discussed at the New York Public Library.

A basketball publication from 1976, an example of a copyrighted content

1964 and later: Copyrighted

All publications released after January 1st, 1964 automatically have copyright applied for 95 years. If we have a physical copy of one of these publications in our sports library, you may view it digitally for a short period of time by way of Controlled Digital Lending.

Publication copyright details are available at The University of Pennsylvania Library and U.S. Copyright Office.