About the Documents Collection

The Government Documents Collection in the Arts and Sciences Libraries is open to students, faculty, and the general public during all hours the Libraries are open. U.S. federal government publications dealing primarily with the social sciences are on the first floor of Lockwood Library, and those dealing with scientific and technical topics are on the third floor of the Science and Engineering Library. New York State and Canadian documents are in Lockwood Library's government documents collection. European Union documents are in the Lockwood Library Book Collection.

Need help? Consult a librarian at Lockwood Library's 2nd floor reference desk or at the combined Undergraduate/Science and Engineering Library reference desk on the 1st floor of Capen Hall during scheduled reference hours. Librarians are also available by appointment to assist with lengthy reference and research concerns. In addition, request specialized instruction for classes or groups at any time; see our Instruction page for details.

In 1963 the University Libraries received depository designation from four governments.

• U.S. Federal Government
• New York State
• Canadian Federal Government
• European Union

The Libraries receive information from these governments for free. In turn, we make this information available to the entire community, both within and outside the University. The Libraries acquired over 800,000 government publications in paper and microfiche before the governments switched to online availability for most materials.

Library users can borrow most government publications. Upon presenting appropriate identification, the Circulation Department will provide those unaffiliated with the University courtesy cards to borrow depository documents. Note, these cards do not apply to other library materials.

The Libraries also selectively acquire materials from governments for which we are not a depository, including other local, state, national and multi-national governments.

A large part of the collection includes statistical information. The U.S. government is the largest producer of statistics in the world.

Documents Librarians Karen Smith and Edward Herman, as well as other staff, are available to assist patrons in using these collections.