A remarkably clean and apparently unused Index of Victor Records has recently surfaced, created to help catalog a personal collection of discs. The piece is essentially a small working tool for collectors of the period, but surviving examples in this condition are not often encountered today. Titled simply “Index of Victor Records” and marked 6924, Part No. 18913A, it offers a fascinating glimpse into how serious record buyers kept track of their growing libraries in the early days of the phonograph.
Inside, the pages are neatly ruled into three columns labeled Title, Artist, and Record Number, providing a straightforward way to log each addition to the shelf. The layout is all business: no advertising, no decorative artwork, just a practical, factory-produced notebook meant to be filled up by the owner. The fact that this copy remains blank suggests it was either a spare that never went into service or part of a collection that was carefully stored and forgotten.
Based on the Victor branding and lack of RCA markings, this index almost certainly predates the 1929 acquisition of Victor by RCA, placing it in the late acoustic or very early electric era of recording. That makes it a small but telling artifact from the time when Victor was still an independent giant in the record industry, and when collectors relied on paper tools like this—rather than printed catalogs alone—to keep their libraries organized. For anyone interested in early disc collecting, label history, or the ephemera surrounding 78 rpm records, this little booklet offers a charming window into how records were used, tracked, and treasured nearly a century ago.
Index of Victor Records – cover front and back.
