Main Collection:

The core collection of books is on the second floor (top floor), accessible from either end of the ground floor, or by elevator. The stacks are well lighted, and areas for study near windows are plentiful. Restrooms and dedicated stations for searches on the URSUS gateway are on the floor with the book collection. Videocassettes and compact disks are shelved among the books. The Library uses the LC classification system in the arrangement of its monograph collection, and the electronic and AV items shelved among the books. If you wish to use the classification to browse a certain subject area, click here: Library of Congress Classification

Derivation of a Call Number for a Sample Book:

Books and other media, which are shelved with the Library of Congress classification system, are arranged by class, or subclass, then by subdivision, then by author, number, and occasionally by year of publication.

• CLASS or subject category is designated by a single letter, A to Z. Each class may be extended by one or more letters. Arrangement is alphabetical.
• CLASS SUBDIVISION is designated by numbers. Arrangement is numerical.
• AUTHOR NUMBER is designated by a letter and number(s). The numbers in the author number extend decimally. Arrangement is alphabetical and decimal.
• If the 4th line is not a date, arrangement is alphabetical and decimal.
• DATE OF PUBLICATION is added to designate edition. Arrangement is chronological.

The following example of a call number's derivation is for a book, The Evolution of Culture in Animals, by John Bonner:

     QL Class - Science; subclass - Zoology 
     778 Class subdivision - Ethnology 
     B58 Author number 
     1981 Year of publication 

Reshelving:

Due to the complexity of the classification, which controls the arrangement of books and other formats on the shelves, the library user should not reshelve items. Even a small misplacement can create difficulty for the next library user in a hurry to find a book by its call number. The Library has trained work study students who understand the fine distinctions of the classification. They reshelve frequently, and occasionally "shelf-read" large sections, to be sure that items are shelved so as to facilitate access by our visitors

Page updated January 28,1997
Page maintained by John Young