The History of
Martial Arts in America
The History of
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The mission wasn’t as straightforward as it sounded because Google would be using a destructive scanning process. Instead of flipping pages and laying each one on a flatbed scanner like the one you probably have at home, the labor Google had contracted with would be slicing the binding off each mag, then loading the pages into a sheet-fed scanner. Afterward, the pages would be tossed. We were a bit saddened to learn that we had to sacrifice a set of our back issues—at the time, we had only two complete collections—but we knew that it would benefit martial artists around the world long after the yellowing pages had turned to dust. So we set about assembling an expendable set. To fill some holes, we pawed through cardboard boxes and old file cabinets and even purchased a few issues from sellers on eBay. In the end, we were successful—except for Vol. 1 No. 1. That’s the pint-size issue with the colorful cover—a painting of a pair of judoka on a pink background. We have only two in the office and decided against giving up one of them. Note to readers: If you own a copy, hang onto it. Last we heard, they were selling for up to $400 apiece. Well, nearly a year has passed, and the online back issues of Black Belt are finally up and running. To dive in, CLICK HERE TO ACCESS GOOGLE'S DIGITAL ARCHIVE OF BLACK BELT MAGAZINE. You’ll be treated to every page of every issue—articles, photos and ads—and the neat thing is, the pages are clickable. That means you can look at the table of contents and click on the kata story on Page 75 and be whisked to the feature without having to “flip” through all the intervening pages. Furthermore, the text is searchable. Want to see every reference to “shotokan karate” in the June 2001 issue? Enter the words in the search box, and each use of “shotokan,” “karate” and “shotokan karate” will be highlighted—in articles and in advertisements. One more thing: Be sure to peruse the “Places Mentioned in This Magazine” feature. It’s a map marked with pushpins that indicate the locations listed in that issue. Their dispersion across the United States and often into Europe and Mexico should put to rest those persistent claims that Black Belt is a West Coast magazine. About the author: Robert W. Young is Black Belt's executive editor. 
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