It is possible to do a quick and dirty, one box keyword search starting at the left side of the Libraries' home page. The results will be sorted into several categories to follow up on: articles from journals, books/media from our online catalog, databases, library research guides like this one, other. To do a more traditional search, read on.
Below the general search box, click on Books and Media to search for physical, paper/cloth bound books, paper/cloth bound journals, physical media, such as DVDs or microforms, or individually cataloged electronic items.
In Books and Media, click on the down arrow on the right side of the form where it says "Catalog." Choose the type of search you want to do. In the box to the right put in your search terms. Enter author's name either last name, first name or first name last name. Omit initial articles in book titles; include them as they occur within the book title itself. To search by L.C. subject heading, it may be better to use the Browse Alphabetically Browse by Subject lower down in the list than Catalog: Subject, because those results will show the surrounding subject headings and number of hits retrieved. After you receive your results, notice that you can filter them in various ways, by using the facets along the left side of the page.
Advanced search allows for combination of more than one search aspect, such as author and title, or subject heading and keyword (Any Field), or several rows of keywords. You can also confine your results to particular parts of the Libraries' collections, using the Location filter on the lower right side of the page.
Below the general search box, click on E Books and Journals to search for journals in electronic form or individual electronic books that will have been received by the Library in a package. You may need to check both Books and Media and E Books and Journals to find your electronic book.
The best quality subject retrieval may be obtained by keyword, if there are no really good subject headings. However, because trained catalogers assign L.C. subject headings to library materials based on examination of the items, L.C. subject headings most often result in high quality retrieval. A set of fat red books in Reference 1 East at Z 696... called the Library of Congress List of Subject Headings should be used to find the best subject headings for your topic. Or, identify a good book through a keyword (Any Field) search and click on the subject headings in the catalog record to be taken to other books with the same heading, if we have any, to expand your bibliography.
Here is a list of potentially useful L.C. subject headings. Use Books and Media Browse Alphabetically Browse by Subject Search.
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feminism--France--history--19th century |
France. Marine = French navy Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1815 |
There are standard sub and sub-sub-headings for certain kinds of library materials: encyclopedias and dictionaries; bibliographies; and biographies. For example Napoleon Emperor of the French 1769-1821--biography or France--history--18th c.--bibliography.
There are also standard sub and sub-sub-headings for chronological periods, as seen just above, and also for certain forms of materials: congresses; correspondence; diaries; exhibitions; manuscripts; periodicals; personal narratives; pictorial works; and sources. For example France--history--revolution--1789-1799--sources. Watch for the headings suggesting primary sources, if that is the kind of material you seek. Sources, diaries, correspondence, manuscripts, and personal narratives are all primary sources.