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Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH)
The LCSH was developed and is maintained by the U.S. Library of Congress, for the collections of the Library. LCSH, as a controlled vocabulary used for indexing, cataloging, and searching for bibliographic records in library catalogs and electronic databases, has become a de facto standard for libraries who use cataloging records disseminated by the Library of Congress, or who catalog to the standards set collaboratively by the Library of Congress and the library community.
Search for books using Hiram College Library catalog.
The A-Z list provides a summary description of each database in the collection.
Individual Databases:
Databases by Subject:
Search for books at academic libraries across Ohio. Print books can be delivered right to the Hiram College Library and you can request them yourself without having to complete an interlibrary loan form.
Keyword Searching
This search looks for matching documents that contain one or more words specified by the you anywhere in the catalog. It is good for finding the largest possible return. However it can also result in materials that have nothing to do with your subject.
Subject Searching
A subject heading is a standardized word or phrase that describes a main idea in the book or article. Every item about that topic uses the same subject term. Think of this like a tag in social media (#RingIT #Terriers #HiramCollege).
In the library catalog, select "Subject" in the drop down box to the left of the search field, then type in the box: Baseball (or, more specialized terms, such as: planetary motion; armadillo diseases; etc.).
The "*" is a truncation symbol that will retrieve various forms of each word, for example, use regulat* to find results like regulation, regulatory, regulators. The "and" will require that both terms appear, but not necessarily in the same phrase.
Title or Author Searches
In the library catalog, choose "Title" to locate a specific work or, choose "Author" to find books written by a particular author.
Material Type (book, eBook, etc.)
Select a material type from the dropdown to limit to a Book (physical item), eBook (digital item), musical recording, map, and more.
Selecting search terms is the hardest part of searching for books. This video outlines the ways to use your skills to find books about your topic.
This video will show you how to search for just books or just eBooks in the library's catalog.
Your search of the online catalog of Books, CDs, and DVDs in the Hiram College Library has led you to the following. How do you find it on the shelf? How do you know if it is an eBook or a print book?
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| LOCATION | CALL # | STATUS | ||||||||
| HIRAM Main Collection | 320.1 Toc-K 2010 | AVAILABLE | ||||||||
Dewey Decimal Classification
The main Dewey Decimal classes are:
000 Generalities
100 Philosophy and psychology
200 Religion
300 Social Sciences
400 Language
500 Natural sciences and mathematics
600 Technology (Applied sciences)
700 The arts (fine and decorative)
800 Literature and rhetoric
900 Geography and history
Each class is further subdivided at the hundred divisions and the thousand sections. Numbers are placed after a decimal point to further identify material more specifically by subject.
The following table below will help with the most frequent locations.
On every entry in the Hiram College Library catalog you will find a section below the Title that looks like this:
LOCATION entry tells you where the item is located physically in the building.
Table of Locations
| Location | Call Number | Arranged by | Floor |
| Main Collection | 0 through 799.99999999 | Dewey Call Number | 2nd floor |
| Main Collection | 800 through 999.999999 | Dewey Call Number | 3rd floor |
| Fiction | Call numbers start with "F" | Alphabetically by Author | 4th floor (Clock Tower) |
| Music Scores | All call numbers | Dewey Call Number | 2nd floor |
| CD Collection | Call numbers start with musical genre | Genre then composer or artist | Lower Level Chamberlain Room |
| Film Collection | 0 through 999.9999999 | Dewey Call Number | Lower Level Chamberlain Room |
| Film Collection | Call numbers start with "Feature Film" | Alphabetically by Title | Lower Level Chamberlain Room |
| Juvenile Nonfiction | 0 through 999.9999999 | Dewey Call Number | 2nd floor |
| Juvenile Fiction | Call numbers start with "JF" | Alphabetically by Author | 2nd floor |
| Picture Books | Call numbers start with "PB" | Alphabetically by Author | 2nd floor |
| Board Books | Call numbers start with "BB" | Alphabetically by Author | 2nd floor |
| Oversize | Call numbers start with a "Q" | Dewey Call Number | 2nd floor |
| Folio | Call numbers start with "Folio" | Dewey Call Number | 2nd floor |
| Government Documents | Call numbers start with an abbreviation of the agency that produced the document | SuDocs system | 3rd floor |
The following table below will help with the most frequent locations.
On every entry in the Hiram College Library catalog you will find a section below the Title that looks like this:
STATUS entry tells you if it is on the shelf or not and if not, why.
Table of Statuses
| Status | Meaning |
| Available | Should be on Shelf. If you cannot find the item, please ask us! |
| Due (followed by a date) | Checked out and is due back on date given. You may borrow a copy through OhioLINK, if a copy is available. |
| Due (followed by a date) Off Campus | Checked out to an OhioLINK borrower and due on the date given. You may borrow a copy through OhioLINK, if a copy is available. |
| New Book Shelf | May be found on the New Book Shelf on the main floor and may be checked out. |
| Missing |
Book cannot be found. You may borrow a copy through OhioLINK, if a copy is available. |
| In Repair | Book is damaged and waiting to be repaired. You may borrow a copy through OhioLINK, if a copy is available. |
| Lib Use Only | Should be on the shelf. May not be checked out, but may be used in the library. |
| Use Online | An Internet resource that you may use online. Check the full record for the link to the item or click "View Online." |
| In Process | The book has been ordered. It may not have arrived yet, or it may be waiting for its labels and stickers before it goes on the shelf. If you have an urgent need for a title "In Process," contact library@hiram.edu with the book's full title and author. |
What if the book is checked out?
If a book is checked out, the Library Catalog will indicate when it will be returned. You then have three options:
What if the book has a link instead of a call number?
The library has some items which which will not be on the shelves but instead available directly by clicking on them. Also Hiram College Library is a Federal Depository Library and may have resources from the Federal Government that are electronic. If you see “Electronic Resource” or "View Online" instead of a call number, click on the title to open the record and then click the link to view the item online.
What if the Library Catalog does not list the book I need?
If the Hiram College Library does not have the book you need, please check through the OhioLink Catalog and/or SearchOhio. Both of these sources can have the titles you need and can be requested simply and easily through the catalog itself. If all else fails you can request the title by using the Inter Library Loan Form. You may also request the book be purchased for the library by emailing the librarians at library@hiram.edu.
By using OhioLINK and SearchOhio, you can request books from academic and public libraries across the state of Ohio and have them sent right here to Hiram at no cost to you! This video will show you how to use those services.
Hiram College Library is a Federal Depository Library Program Member. This means that we preserve government documents for students, faculty, and the community to access. Sometimes, depending on your search result, you might find that the Government Documents are cluttering your search results. To fix that, use the collections limiter.
You can learn more about our Government Documents Collection on our Guide.
Collection Limiter in Book Search:
Select the Collection limiter to reduce your results to a particular part of the library, such as the film collection, juvenile collection, or government documents. Since the Government Documents collection is so large, it can sometimes overwhelm your results. Use the "All Collections Except Gov Docs" limiter to remove them from your search.
