Find a Book

The library catalog can be searched in several ways.

Subject Searches

Subject Searches are good when you only have a general topic, like quilting or how to paint. Remember, subject searches are not written in "natural" language. If you are looking for books on how to paint, you have to think of what subject that would be under (how to paint would be under the subject Painting technique).

Select Subject from the search screen in the online catalog and type a search term. The results will list the broad subject and its sub-categories. Click on the subject term to view our holdings for this subject.

Examples:

• Biography

If your search produces no results, consider using a keyword search.

Keyword Searches

Keyword Searches are good when you are looking for a type of book and you can't think of a subject heading. For books on how to paint, you can type "how to paint" in the keyword search box. This will give you books that have the words how and paint in the title or description.

Select Keyword from the search screen in the online catalog and type a search term.

• Search for an exact phrase: Biography Dictionary (will look for the words Biography and Dictionary) You could put quotation marks around the phrase "Biographical Dictionary" and the search would bring back items that have the words "how to paint" as an exact phrase.
• Search for keywords: "Maya Angelou" Biography (will look for the phrase "Maya Angelou" and the word Biography)

If you find a book you like, look at the subject heading. Use the subject heading to do another search for more books.

Common Call Numbers

Most of the biographies are located in the biography section located on the 3rd floor in the Non-Fiction area.

Use the catalog to browse a listing of the items in the biography section. Type the letter B in a call number search.

You can limit this search in order to find a specific biography using the Limit this Search feature at the upper right.

Find an Article

Use an index to find articles about a topic. Indexes and full-text magazines and newspapers are available at the library and through our website. To use the library's online indexes, go to Research & Subject Guides and select Databases.

• Gale Virutal Reference Library's Encyclopedia of World Biography
• Literature Resource Center for Author Biographies

You can use a subject or a keyword search to find magazine articles. If you have a complex topic, use a keyword search.

If you are looking for an article published around or prior to 1980, you will need to use a print index. Print indexes are available in the Periodicals Department on the third floor.

• Biography Index
• Biography and Genealogy Master Index (located in Reference Department)
• Poole's Index to Periodical Literature, 1802-1906
• Reader's Guide to Periodicals, 1900-

Magazines at the Library
Selected Magazines available at the Main Library (available on the third floor):

• Biography
• Current Biography
• People Weekly

Reference Books

Selections from the Reference Collection:

• American National Biography(REF 920.073 A51265 v. 1-24)
• Current Biography 1940- (REF 920 C97)
• Dictionary of National Biography (British) (REF 920.042 D554 v. 1-22)
• Great Lives from History 3 sets covering Ancient times to the 20th Century.
  Call number area: REF 920.009 G786
• National Cyclopedia of American Biography (REF 920.07 N27 v. 1-63)