U.S. Federal Documents in Bartle Library
Contents
- What are U.S. Government Documents?
- Where are Government Documents Located?
- Searching for Government Documents
- Key Finding Aids for Government Documents
- Superintendent of Documents (SuDoc) Classification System
WHAT ARE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS?
As the world's largest publisher, the U.S. Government produces books, periodicals, pamphlets, maps, microfiche and electronic publications on an immense variety of subjects. Criminal justice, demographics, the economy, the environment, foreign relations, health, history, law, and labor are areas well represented in the Bartle Library Documents Collection.
WHERE ARE GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS LOCATED?
Printed and Microfiche Publications
Most print and microfiche documents are located in the Government Documents Area, Bartle Library. Some titles are located in Reference, the general stacks, with our periodicals, or in the Microform Area (3rd floor). Consult the online catalog for the location of specific items.
Not all government documents are in the Libraries' online catalog. However, all documents received since August 1995, plus census publications, environmental impact statements, printed Congressional hearings and prints, General Accounting Office reports, publications of government commissions and boards, and various other sets, are in the catalog. See the searching section below for tips on locating documents not in the online catalog.
CD-ROM Collection
Government CD-ROMs are kept at the Bartle Reference Desk. Frequently requested CD-ROMs are available for use in the Online and Data Office near the Reference Desk. Other CD-ROMs can be checked-out or installed for use in the Library.
Internet
Increasing numbers of government publications are available only on the Internet. For links to government Internet sites visit our United States Government Information page.
SEARCHING FOR GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS
Basic Search Strategy: Search the Library Catalog first. About 40% of the collection is cataloged and found in the online catalog like other library materials. If you find a document in the Library Catalog write down the call number AND location before going to the stacks. Most documents are shelved in the Government Documents Collection, but some are shelved in the main library collection, others may be on microfiche, CD-ROM, or the Internet.
Since portions of the collection are not yet cataloged and since we don't own all federal documents, you may have to search other databases before locating certain publications. If you don't find what you need in the Library Catalog search the Monthly Catalog and WorldCat to determine a title and SuDoc number. You can then look for the SuDoc number in our documents collection to determine if the Library owns the item. Interlibrary loan is available for document not owned by the Libraries.
For congressional documents see U.S. Legislative Branch for detailed information on resources.
FIRST: Search the Library Catalog for all documents received since August 1995 plus congressional hearings, census publications, GAO Reports, and other high interest materials.
SECOND: Search the Monthly
Catalog 
for all documents published since 1976.
To determine if we have a document found in the Monthly Catalog, write down the title and SuDoc number then search the Documents Collection for the SuDoc number.
THIRD: Search WorldCat
or the print Monthly Catalog [Ref Z1223 .A18] for pre-1976 documents.
WorldCat does not include SuDoc numbers. To find a SuDoc number, take the title found in WorldCat and look it up in the print version of the Monthly Catalog. Then search for the SuDoc number in the Documents Collection.
FOURTH: Search Selected Print Indexes to Documents published prior to 1976
Monthly Catalog (1895-present) [Ref Z 1223 .A18]
Descriptive Catalogue of the Government Publications of the United States (1774-1881) [Ref Z 1223 .A 1885]
Declassified Documents Catalog [Ref Z 1223 Z9 D4]
Post-World War II documents formerly classified as Top Secret, Secret, or
Confidential and were declassified by the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
or Executive Order.
Document Catalog 1893-1940 [Ref Z 1223 .A13]
KEY FINDING AIDS FOR U.S. GOVERNMENT INFORMATION
Directories
Congressional Staff Directory [Ref Desk JK 1012 .C65]
Staff listing, biographies, district offices, committee assignments, election
results, congressional district zip codes, congressional district maps.
Federal Staff Directory [Ref Desk JK 723 .E9 F44]
Executive Office of the President, departments, independent and quasi-official,
international, and non-governmental agencies and organizations.
U.S. Government Manual [Ref Desk JK 421 .A3]
Agency responsibilities, abolished and transferred agencies, agencies appearing
in the Code of Federal Regulations.
Legislation and Congressional Documents
CIS/Index to Publications of the U.S. Congress (1970-) [Ref JK
1001 .C79]
Abstracts and indexes of Congressional publications since 1970, including
committee reports, hearings, and prints, and House and Senate documents.
CIS U.S. Serial Set Index 1789-1969 [Ref Z 1223 .Z9 C65]
Indexes to publications of Congress, primarily by subject. The Serial
Set is located in the Library Annex at
Conklin.
CIS U.S. Congressional Committee Hearings Index [Ref Z1223.A2 C43
1985]
Indexes and abstracts committee hearings from 1833 to 1969
Congressional Record [J 11 .R5]
Daily record of the activities of Congress including House and Senate Proceedings,
Extensions of Remarks, and the Daily Digest - a summary of committee and floor
actions. Friday edition has following week's agenda.
Presidential Documents
Code of Federal Regulations, Title 3, The President [Docs AE 2.106/3:3]
Compilation of Presidential Proclamations, Executive Orders and other documents
Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents [Current Periodicals
Display]
Addresses, remarks, statements, communications to Congress and federal agencies,
Executive Orders, interviews, meetings with foreign leaders, and supplementary
materials. Quarterly indexes in bound volumes on the 3rd floor.
Statistics
--General Sources
Statistical Abstract of the United States [Ref HA 206 .S8]
General statistical compendium for U.S. statistics. An excellent place to
start looking.
Historical Statistics of the United States [Ref HA 206 .S82]
Colonial Times to 1970. Also on CD-ROM in Data Services Office
Datapedia of the U.S., 1790-2000 [Ref HA 202 .K87]
Updates Historical Statistics.
--Business (See also the library guides: Economic Data and International Business.)
Business Statistics of the United States [Ref Desk HC 101 .A13122]
--Criminal Justice
Correctional Populations in the United States [Docs J 29.17:]
Criminal Victimization in the United States [Docs J 29.9/2:]
Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics [Ref HV 7245 .N37b]
Persons arrested, attitudes towards crime, nature of offenses, processing
of defendants, persons under correctional supervision. National in scope.
Uniform Crime Reports (Crime in the United States) [Ref HV 6787
.A3]
Crimes, arrests, homicide patterns, law enforcement personnel. Useful for
statistics for specific geographic areas. Narrower focus than the Sourcebook.
--Education
Condition of Education [Ref L 112 .N377]
Digest of Education Statistics [Ref L 11 .D5]
--Employment, Social Security, and Welfare
Annual Statistical Supplement to the Social Security Bulletin [Ref
HD 7123 .S562]
Social welfare and the economy; old-age, survivors & disability insurance;
supplemental security income; health care; insurance and support programs.
Handbook of U.S. Labor Statistics [Ref HD 5723 .H36]
Historical data and projections on labor market trends. Covers include earnings,
prices, productivity, injuries, foreign labor and price statistics, and more.
--Vital and Health (See also the library guide: Vital and Health Statistics)
Health United States [Ref RA 407.3 .H43 - previous years: Docs HE 20.7042/6:]
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report [Docs HE 20.7009]
Vital Statistics of the United States [Docs HE 20.6210]
Superintendent of Documents (SuDoc) Classification System
Federal documents are organized according to the Superintendent of Documents classification system which groups materials by the issuing agency rather than by subject.
Example: U.S. Industrial Outlook C 61.34:995
C = Issuing Agency - Commerce Department
61. = Subordinate bureau within agency - International Trade Administration
34: = Number designating the title
995 = Year of publication - 1995
Major Agency Designations for SuDoc Classification
| SuDoc |
Agency |
SuDoc |
Agency |
| A |
Agriculture Department |
AE |
National Archives |
| C |
Commerce Department |
C 3 |
Census Bureau |
| D |
Defense Department |
E |
Energy Department |
| ED |
Education Department |
EP |
Environmental Protection Agency |
| GA |
General Accounting Office |
HE |
Health and Human Services |
| HH |
Housing and Urban Development |
I |
Interior Department |
| HE |
Health and Human Services |
I 19 |
US Geological Survey |
| J |
Justice Department |
JU |
Judiciary |
| L |
Labor Department |
LC |
Library of Congress |
| NAS |
NASA |
PR |
President |
| PREX |
Executive Office of the President |
S |
State Department |
| T |
Treasury Department |
T 22 |
Internal Revenue Service |
| TD |
Transportation Department |
X |
CONGRESS |
| Y |
Congress |
Y4 |
Congressional Committees |