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Finding Items in the Library

How to locate the books, media, and printed articles you find in your research.

Understanding SuDocs Numbers

The Haas Library is a partial government documents repository.  All governments documents are located on the third floor of the library - in Superintendent of Documents order.

The Superintendent of Documents uses an alpha/numeric classification system which assigns a SuDoc number to each publication.  This system classifies each document by an institutional author (Congress or a government department, agency or commission), not by subject. A SuDoc number is composed of two major parts divided by the colon: the stem, which identifies the government department or agency (the author) that issued the publication and after the colon a book number which is specific to that document.

The following example for SuDoc number I 29.9/5: 156 illustrates this system.

       
I

 

=

Department of the Interior

       

     29     

 

=

National Parks

9

  = 

bibliographies and lists (type of document e.g. an annual report, newsletter, etc. )
       
5
  
=

type of bibliography

     
156
  
=

the book number


SuDoc numbers beginning with the letters A - T identify the executive department or agency that  published the document. Therefore, A is for Agriculture, S is for the State Department. etc. The letters X and Y, however, identify documents pertaining to Congress, such as hearings and reports.  An example is Y 4.J 89/2 : F/31/6.

Quick Tips:

  • The dot (.) is a period, not a decimal.
  • All numbers are whole numbers, not decimals (.9 comes before .12)
  • Letters come before numbers
  • Nothing comes before something (for ex. AE 1.102 : G 28 precedes AE 1.102 : G 28/2/Trans.7)          

Ask a reference librarian:

There are actually two gov docs collections on the third floor - circulating and noncirculating. If you cannot find a document, please  ask a reference librarian for assistance.