Buried on a center floor of Alden Library, one department has provided Ohio University students access to government documents for more than a century.
At 2:30 p.m. today, OU’s Government Documents Department will celebrate its 125th anniversary in the government documents area on the fifth floor of Alden.
OU’s federal depository library is one of about 1,200 nationwide, 56 of which are in Ohio. Of the Ohio federal depository libraries, 35 are members of OhioLINK, said Doreen Hockenberry, head of the Government Documents Department.
The department provides free public access to documents from all three branches of the government, Hockenberry said.
“We are here as a service to provide this information free and unfettered,” she said.
Records available in the department include tax information, stenographic materials, maps, Supreme Court documents, small business information, census statistics, import and export information, highway traffic statistics, current legislation and special agency research reports, Hockenberry added.
Most of the documents come from the U.S. Government Printing Office. The majority of them are available in paper, microform, CD-ROM, DVD or online, according to Alden’s website.
State Rep. Debbie Phillips (D-92nd) will attend the ceremony tomorrow, as well as Representative Bill Johnson (R-6th) or a representative from his office, Hockenberry said.
At the event, Government Documents Department employees will receive a 125th-anniversary plaque.
George Barnum, an agency historian for the U.S. Government Printing Office, also will present a program called “Notable Days: Snapshots from 150 years of Service to the Nation” in honor of both the anniversary of Alden’s collection and the 150th anniversary of the printing office.
The government documents are a valuable resource for students, said John Gilliom, chair of OU’s political science department.
“I have been there myself to do research on congressional hearings. I have sent students there,” Gilliom said. “I think, not only in terms of our research mission but in our role as a public institution, it’s a great thing to have.”
— Brian Vadakin contributed to this article.
rm279109@ohiou.edu
