How do I find a book on a shelf using a call number?
Answer
1. Find the item in the catalog
The record in the catalog will include the availability of the item, the location you can find it in Wallace Library, as well as the Library of Congress Classification Call Number. You will use the location and call number to locate the book on the shelves.
2. Identify the call number
Call Numbers are read one row at a time, with each row providing more information to help identify the book or item.
Example: The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories
Call Number: PN6014 .B695 1993
|
Call Number Part |
How to read it and what it means | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PN |
The letters at the beginning are read alphabetically and correspond to Library of Congress classifications. All the P call numbers come first, P1 to P9999, then all the PA call numbers, then PB, PC, etc. In this example, the P classification is Language and Literature, and the N subclass is General Literature. |
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| 6014 | The subclass number 6014, should be read as a whole number, with books in order from 1, to 10, to 100, to 1000, etc. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| .B695 |
The next line is read as a decimal so .B695 comes before .B7 This is called a cutter number and represents the author. In this case .B695 indicates the book is by the author William J. Bennett. |
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| 1993 | The final line is read as a whole number, and can provide additional information, such as: volume, part, copy number, or publication date. In this example, 1993, is the publication date. Call numbers with no data on this line will be shelved before a call number with data in this line. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3. Find out which floor and/or room of the library contains that call number range
Call Number Locations
| Library of Congress call number | Floor and room |
|---|---|
| A-M | Stacks level |
| N | First & Second Mezzanine, Clark Room |
| P-PS | Stacks level |
| PS-Z | Stacks level, Second Stacks Room |
| Oversize, Quarto, & Folio | Stacks level, Second Stacks Room |
| Reference | Main Level, Reference Reading Room |
Non-call Number Collections
| Collection | Location in Wallace Library |
|---|---|
| Periodicals | Stacks level – Compact shelving |
| Maps and Atlases | Reference Reading Room |
4. Find the item on the shelf
The image below highlights how library materials with Library of Congress call numbers are arranged on the shelves:
