the library of congress

The Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the nation's oldest federal cultural institution and serves as the research arm of Congress. It is also the largest library in the world, with millions of books, recordings, photographs, maps and manuscripts in its collections. The Library of Congress offers some beautiful rooms in its Jefferson and Madison Buildings, located at the corner of First Street and Independence Avenue, S.E., for evening events.
The Library's mission is to support the Congress in fulfilling its constitutional duties and to further the progress of knowledge and creativity for the benefit of the American people.
The Library of Congress was established by an act of Congress in 1800 when President John Adams signed a bill providing for the transfer of the seat of government from Philadelphia to the new capital city of Washington. The legislation described a reference library for Congress only, containing "such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress - and for putting up a suitable apartment for containing them therein…"
Established with $5,000 appropriated by the legislation, the original library was housed in the new Capitol until August 1814, when invading British troops set fire to the Capitol Building, burning and pillaging the contents of the small library.
Within a month, retired President Thomas Jefferson offered his personal library as a replacement. Jefferson had spent 50 years accumulating books, "putting by everything which related to America, and indeed whatever was rare and valuable in every science"; his library was considered to be one of the finest in the United States. In offering his collection to Congress, Jefferson anticipated controversy over the nature of his collection, which included books in foreign languages and volumes of philosophy, science, literature, and other topics not normally viewed as part of a legislative library. He wrote, "I do not know that it contains any branch of science which Congress would wish to exclude from their collection; there is, in fact, no subject to which a Member of Congress may not have occasion to refer."
In January 1815, Congress accepted Jefferson's offer, appropriating $23,950 for his 6,487 books, and the foundation was laid for a great national library. The Jeffersonian concept of universality, the belief that all subjects are important to the library of the American legislature, is the philosophy and rationale behind the comprehensive collecting policies of today's Library of Congress.
Ainsworth Rand Spofford, Librarian of Congress from 1864 to 1897, applied Jefferson's philosophy on a grand scale and built the Library into a national institution. Spofford was responsible for the copyright law of 1870, which required all copyright applicants to send to the Library two copies of their work. This resulted in a flood of books, pamphlets, maps, music, prints, and photographs. Facing a shortage of shelf space at the Capitol, Spofford convinced Congress of the need for a new building, and in 1873 Congress authorized a competition to design plans for the new Library.
In 1886, after many proposals and much controversy, Congress authorized construction of a new Library building in the style of the Italian Renaissance in accordance with a design prepared by Washington architects John L. Smithmeyer and Paul J. Pelz.
The Congressional authorization was successful because of the hard work of two key Senators: Daniel W. Voorhees (Indiana), who served as chairman of the Joint Committee from 1879 to 1881, and Justin S. Morrill (Vermont), chairman of Senate Committee on Buildings and Grounds.
In 1888, General Thomas Lincoln Casey, chief of the Army Corps of Engineers, was placed in charge of construction. His chief assistant was Bernard R. Green, who was intimately involved with the building until his death in 1914. Beginning in 1892, a new architect, Edward Pearce Casey, the son of General Casey, began to supervise the interior work, including sculptural and painted decoration by more than
50 American artists.
When the Library of Congress building opened its doors to the public on November 1, 1897, it was hailed as a glorious national monument and "the largest, the costliest, and the safest" library building in the world.
Today's Library of Congress is an unparalleled world resource. The collection of more than 158 million items includes more than 36 million cataloged books and other print materials in 460 languages; more than 69 million manuscripts; the largest rare book collection in North America; and the world's largest collection of legal materials, films, maps, sheet music and sound recordings.
Newspapers
The Library of Congress maintains one of the largest and most comprehensive newspaper collections in the world, comprised not only of the major titles published in all 50 states and territories of the United States, but also of titles from most independent countries and many dependent states that have existed during the past three centuries. The general newspaper collection in the custody of Serial and Government Publications Division is comprised of over 1,000,000 current loose issues, over 33,300 bound volumes, and 500,000 microfilm reels. Numerous newspapers are available in full-text on Reading Room computers.
S&GP maintains a collection of hundreds of original special commemorative and anniversary newspaper editions reporting historical events. Also available are specialized microfilm runs such as American Colonial Press, Early English Newspapers (1603-1818), underground newspapers, early African-American newspapers, German and Japanese prisoner of war camp newspapers, and the Russian Revolution Newspaper collection.
Current Periodicals
Consisting of approximately 70,000 current foreign and domestic, unbound serial titles, the Library's collection is accessible to readers through the Division's Newspaper and Current Periodical Room. Once bound (generally within 18 months) or microfilmed, periodicals are served along with other items from the general collections through the Main, Business, Science, Local History & Genealogy, European, Hispanic, or Microform reading rooms.
The Newspaper and Current Periodical Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays (stack service until 4:00), and from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, (stack service until 7:30). The Library is closed on Sundays and all federal holidays. Located in Room LM-133 of the Madison Building, the reading room is staffed by reference librarians who provide reference service and assistance in the use of automated reference tools, and by technicians who assist readers.
Government Publications
The Division collects and serves current U.S. federal, state, municipal, and foreign and international serial documents in Western European languages. The Division keeps a selective depository set of U.S. government publications in multiple formats from 1993-. Maintained as a separate collection, it includes monographs and many titles that have never been added to the Library's general collection. An automated version of the GPO Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications is also available. United Nations documents dating from 1945 provide valuable information to researchers. Among the Section's auxiliary collections are unbound, distributed CIA publications; and an archival set of Federal Advisory Committee (FAC) documents since 1972.
Electronic Collections
In its Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room, the Division makes available to readers numerous fulltext publications on its computers. Generally these provide a broad range of statistical information, or are indexes, abstracts and indexes to newspaper and periodical literature, or provide full-text retrieval of newspapers or periodical literature.
To enhance access to its collections and to provide research guidance the Division has made a number of its finding aids available to the public through the Internet on the Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room Home Page. Online catalog records for Library of Congress serial holdings are also available on Internet.
The Library of Congress Classification (LCC) is a classification system that was first developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to organize and arrange the book collections of the Library of Congress. Proposals for additions and changes are reviewed regularly at staff meetings in the Policy and Standards Division (PSD) and an approved list is published. After that many libraries of other countries adopted the classification system.
The Serial and Government Publications Division provides specialized reference and information services, orientation, and research guidance on newspapers, periodicals, and government publications. Services are available to inquirers by internet, telephone, telefacsimile, correspondence, and in person.
The Serial and Government Publications Division acquires current and non-current newspapers (other than Slavic and Oriental languages); current periodicals; monographs and serials issued by governmental units and some intergovernmental and international organizations; and publications relating to the history and bibliography of newspapers, serials, and government publications.
The Division develops and maintains appropriate web pages, catalogs, bibliographies, union lists, indexes, and other finding aids and publications for material in its area of responsibility.
S&GP also prepares for binding or microfilming all government publications, newspapers, and serials in its custody, and manages a long-range newspaper preservation program in cooperation with the Preservation Office and the Collections Policy Office.
The Inspector General concept is as old as america. It dates back in part to the Continental Army's custom of having an independent party review the readiness of combat troops. The Library of Congress Office of Inspector General (OIG) fills a similar role by helping to ensure that the Library's business is conducted as effectively, efficiently, and economically as possible.
It is no small task. The Library employs nearly 4,000 personnel and has an annual budget of $750 million in appropriated funds and other revenues. It has a strategic five-year plan that lays out ambitious goals and expectations for the future. To meet such expectations, it is essential that fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement within the Library be held in check.
The OIG oversees all Library of Congress programs and operations and has the independence to decide which activities to review. It conducts audits, investigations, and other reviews and reports
semiannually to the Congress, and also operates a hotline so that anyone can report suspected infractions related to Library activities.
Above all, the goal of OIG is to conduct highly credible, useful, and timely reviews that support the Library's objectives.
The Open World Leadership Center’s mission is to enhance understanding and capabilities for cooperation between the United States and the countries of Eurasia by developing a network of leaders in the region who have gained significant, firsthand exposure to America’s democratic, accountable government and its free-market system.
The Joint Committee on the Library (the oldest continuing Joint Committee of the U.S. Congress) was created on April 24, 1800, when President John Adams signed the bill establishing the federal government in Washington and creating the Library of Congress. The act appropriated $5,000 for "the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress" after it moved to the new capital city of Washington. The Library's appropriation for fiscal year 1811 officially made the Joint Committee on the Library a standing committee. From the 95th Congress forward, the Joint Committee on the Library has been composed of the chairman (or designee) and four members each from the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and the Committee on House Administration. The chairmanship and vice chairmanship alternate between the House and Senate every Congress.
An agency of the legislative branch of the U.S. government, the Library of Congress encompasses several integral service and support units,
Office of the Librarian
The mission of the Office of the Librarian is to set policy and to direct and support programs and activities to accomplish the Library's mission. The Office of the Librarian is the administrative branch of the Library of Congress and has overall management responsibility for the Library.
Congressional Research Service
CRS exclusively serves Congress by providing confidential, objective and authoritative research and analysis to help inform the legislative debate.
Copyright Office
The mission of the Copyright Office is to promote creativity by administering and sustaining an effective national copyright system.
Law Library
Congress established its Law Library in 1832, recognizing its need for ready access to reliable legal materials. The Law Library has grown over the years to become the world’s largest law library, with a collection of over three million volumes spanning the ages and covering virtually every jurisdiction in the world.
Library Services
The mission of Library Services is to develop qualitatively the Library's universal collections, which document the history and further the creativity of the American people and which record and contribute to the advancement of civilization and knowledge throughout the world, and to acquire, organize, provide access to, maintain, secure, and preserve these collections.
Office of Strategic Initiatives
The mission of the Office of Strategic Initiatives is to support the Library's vision and strategy by directing the overall digital strategic planning for the Library and the national program for long-term preservation of digital cultural assets, leading a collaborative institution-wide effort to develop consolidated digital future plans, and integrating the delivery of information technology services.
Office of Support Operations
Several offices that provide essential services to all service and support units within the Library make up this unit. These include Integrated Support Services, Human Resources Services and the Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness.
Other offices that operate independently of individual service units but are within the Library's organizational structure
The Library of Congress sponsors privately endowed programs that honor achievement in the humanities and creativity. Through these awards and prizes, the world's greatest repository of human creativity honors those who have advanced and embodied the ideals of individual creativity, conviction, dedication, scholarship and exuberance.
Living Legends
Established during its Bicentennial celebration in 2000, the Library of Congress' "Living Legend" award is selected by the Library's curators and subject specialists to honor artists, writers, activists, filmmakers, physicians, entertainers, sports figures and public servants who have made significant contributions to America's diverse cultural, scientific and social heritage.
Poet Laureate
The Poet Laureate is appointed annually by the Librarian of Congress and serves from October to May. During his or her term, the Poet Laureate seeks to raise the national consciousness to a greater appreciation of the reading and writing of poetry. In making the appointment, the Librarian consults with former appointees, the current laureate and distinguished poetry critics.
Kluge Prize
Endowed by Library benefactor John W. Kluge, the Kluge Prize rewards lifetime achievement in the wide range of disciplines not covered by the Nobel prizes. Such disciplines include history, philosophy, politics, anthropology, sociology, religion, criticism in the arts and humanities, and linguistics. The award is at the financial level of the Nobel awards.
Gershwin Prize
The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song celebrates the work of an artist whose career reflects lifetime achievement in promoting song as a vehicle of musical expression and cultural understanding.
Fiction Prize
The Library of Congress Lifetime Achievement Award for the Writing of Fiction was established in 2008 to honor a career dedicated to the literary arts. The award recognizes the enduring achievements of its recipient and his or her dedication to embodying the human spirit in the pages of fiction.
National Book Festival Creative Achievement Award
Winners of the National Book Festival Creative Achievement Award. Past winners include Toni Morrison, Isabel Allende, and John Grisham.
The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature
The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature raises national awareness of the importance of young people’s literature as it relates to lifelong literacy, education and the development and betterment of the lives of young people. Authoris Katherine Paterson and Jon Scieszka have held the title.。