Government Documents
The Government Documents Department of the Newton Gresham Library provides users with free unrestricted access to documents and other materials published by both the United States federal government and the Texas State government.
Document Collections
The Newton Gresham Library participates in the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) and the Texas State Publications Depository Program. Federal publications are classified and arranged with SuDoc numbers according to the Superintendent of Documents Classification System. The library selects the types of federal publications it wishes to receive from the List of Classes of United States Government Publications Available for Selection by Depository Libraries. These selections are made in accordance with the Newton Gresham Library Collection Development Policy: Government Documents.
All Federal and Texas State documents are listed in the library's online public access catalog (SamCat) from 1995 to current, including both publications in tangible format (e.g., print, microfiche, CD-ROM, DVD, video, sheet map, etc.) and publications where access is provided electronically (clicking on a URL button will either display the document itself or the web page on which it resides). To locate uncataloged pre-1995 documents owed by the Newton Gresham Library, users will need to use the old style card catalog in the documents department (the library has an ongoing project to enter pre-1995 documents into SamCat). Selected documents (both monographs and periodicals) are cataloged for the library's Main and Reference collections using Library of Congress call numbers.
The principal index to federal documents has traditionally been the Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications (1895-2004). It is has now been replaced by the more comprehensive Catalog of U.S. Government Publications, which will eventually contain records for all unclassified federal documents in all formats from the late 18th-century to current. Until that project is complete, a variety of print and online bibliographic resources listing earlier documents are available for author, title, and subject searching (see Locating Pre-1976 United States Federal Documents for a guide to these sources in the Newton Gresham Library). In addition, the OCLC WorldCat database contains records for older documents held by around 70,000 libraries worldwide (access is provided through the library's Databases and Indexes web page and is restricted to those affiliated with Sam Houston State University).
Texas State documents are classified and arranged by TxDoc numbers according to the Texas Documents Classification Scheme. The principal bibliographic resource for these documents is the monthly index Texas State Publications. Other resources include the aforementioned OCLC WorldCat and The Library Catalog of Texas State Agencies.
Location and Hours
The Government Documents Department is located on the east side of the first floor (Room 105) of the Newton Gresham Library.
Government publications are accessible to the public during the hours the Newton Gresham Library is open.
Staff is available to assist users locate material in Government Documents during these hours:
| Sunday | 2:00 PM—9:00 PM |
| Monday | 7:30 AM—9:00 PM |
| Tuesday | 7:30 AM—9:00 PM |
| Wednesday | 7:30 AM—9:00 PM |
| Thursday | 7:30 AM—5:00 PM |
| Friday | 7:30 AM—5:00 PM |
| Saturday | 2:00 PM—5:00 PM |
When the room is closed assistance is available at the library's Reference Desk on the second floor.
Federal and state publications—with some exceptions listed below —may be checked out by Sam Houston State faculty, staff, and students (including distance education students), as well as by TexShare and courtesy card holders, for the loan periods appropriate to their classifications. Documents are subject to the same circulation policies as other library materials.
Noncirculating publications (federal and state) include the following:
- Document Reference or Building Use Only status;
- nonprint formats (microfiche, CD-ROMs, DVDs, and videos);
- periodicals (bound volumes and single issues);
- annual and biennial reports of agencies, departments, boards, and commissions;
- maps and posters in the sheet map cases;
- Code of Federal Regulations;
- Congressional Record;
- Federal Register;
- House and Senate Journals (federal and state);
- Internal Revenue Service tax preparation materials;
- U.S. Census Bureau publications;
- U.S. Congressional Serial Set.
Copies of print and microfiche documents can be made in Copy Services (Room 141); copies of CDs and DVSs can be made in Government Documents by patrons supplying their own blank discs.
Staff
Name |
Position |
Extension |
Email |
|---|---|---|---|
| R. Scott Harnsberger | Government Documents Librarian | 3574 | lib_rsh@shsu.edu |
| Lisa G. Neely | Library Associate | 1738 | lib_lgn@shsu.edu |
| Alyce Hoffman | Student Assistant | ||
| Kelsie Johnson | Student Assistant |
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