Government Resources

The William Howard Doane Library at Denison University was designated a Federal Depository Library by U. S. Rep. Buriah Wilkins on March 1, 1884. Since that time it has provided free public access to government information to the citizens of Licking County and surrounding communities.

Denison has a somewhat unusual history as a depository library. Early in World War II there was some fear that Washington, D. C. might be bombed. To protect our national heritage valuable materials were removed from the Library of Congress and hidden at five sites around the country. Denison was the only site west of the Alleghenies.

Currently the Government Publications Department receives approximately 30% of all publications available for selection through the Federal Depository Library Program. Our selection profile is designed to serve the needs of the students, faculty, and staff of Denison University, local business and the general public.

Most documents received by the library under the Federal Depository Library Program are classified using the Superintendent of Documents (SuDoc) classification system and are housed in the B and C sections of the main floor of Doane Library. Approximately ten percent of documents in the collection have been cataloged and are included in the library's main collection. Some older materials are housed on the seventh tier and will be available on request at the Reference desk during library business hours. The library has been cataloging documents since 1992 and is in the process of cataloging documents received prior to 1992 for display in CONSORT, the library catalog of the Five Colleges of Ohio consortium.

The Denison Depository Collection contains materials on most subjects and from most government agencies. Special emphasis has been placed on the following agencies and series: