Start With: Popular and Highly Used Resources
- ProQuest Congressional This link opens in a new windowThe ProQuest Congressional Research Digital Collection (CRDC) provides full-text access to more than 5,000 Congressional committee prints published from 2004 to present and more than 23,000 Congressional Research Service reports published from 2004-present. Includes citations for bills, public laws, and Statutes at Large, and analytical abstracts of the documents. Also includes links to political parties and organizations and news sources. Coverage 1789-present.
- govinfo.govProvides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government.with coverage generally from the early 1990s to the present.
- HeinOnline This link opens in a new windowHuge legal search tool with full-text of legal journals, legal histories, government documents, state and federal cases, international law and includes coverage of many older legal materials. Contains the Congressional Record, Federal Register, and Code of Federal Regulations, complete coverage of the U.S. Reports (Supreme Court) back to 1754.
- voxgovSearch publications, press releases, and social media activity of U.S. government agencies and legislative entities including legislators, department chiefs, and other branches in the federal government. Social media includes Twitter feeds, YouTube videos and other output by government entities. Congressional documents such as hearings are also available.
- Legislative Insight This link opens in a new windowFederal legislative history service that makes available thoroughly researched compilations of digital full-text publications relevant to enacted United States public laws.
- Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications, 1895-1976Issued by the Superintendent of Documents for the Government Printing Office, catalogs all publications of the United States government, including those of the Congress and all executive departments (with the exception of administrative and confidential or restricted documents). The government prints thousands of documents each year, and many of these are sent to depository libraries. This database covers January 1895 - June 1976.
- Catalog of Government Publications, 1976-presentProduced by the Government Publishing Office (GPO), the Catalog of United States Government publications includes print and electronic Government information products created by Federal agencies. 1976 to the present, updated daily.
- Government Publications LibraryThe University of Minnesota Libraries provides access to government information both online and within its libraries' collections across campus. Besides being a full (regional) United States government depository, the Libraries also receive documents from Canada, the European Union, and the United Nations, as well as publications from other countries and international organizations. The Government Publications collection also contains state documents.
Executive and Agencies
- ADAMS (U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission)ADAMS has the full text of regulatory and technical documents and reports written by NRC, NRC contractors, or NRC licensees. Documents include NRC regulatory guides, NUREG-series reports, correspondence, inspection reports, and others, all searchable and accessible from the NRC Web Site.
- Federal Agency DirectoryBased on the entries in the US Government Manual, this site includes a very complete listing of federal agency sites.
- FOIA.govSearch across all government websites at once to see what is already available without the need for a FOIA request. If you do not find what you are looking for online, or if you want to request more information on a given topic, you can submit a FOIA request to the agencies’ Contacts.
- NTRL (National Technical Reports Library)Search for federally funded bibliographic scientific, technical, engineering, and business information. Free access to three million records and abstracts in its bibliographic database and over 800,000 digitized full-text reports.
- Regulatory InsightThis database provides researchers with workflow solutions to facilitate research tasks associated with administrative law. It offers U.S. federal administrative law histories beginning in 1936, organized by federal statute and Executive Order. It also includes a research tool to facilitate regulatory research organized by Federal Agency.
Legislative
- Congress.govThe official website for U.S. federal legislative information. The site provides access to accurate, timely, and complete legislative information for Members of Congress, legislative agencies, and the public. It is presented by the Library of Congress (LOC) using data from the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Office of the Secretary of the Senate, the Government Printing Office, Congressional Budget Office, and the LOC's Congressional Research Service.
- WestlawNext Campus Research (Law)WestlawNext Campus Research provides access to legal materials, including cases, statutes, and regulations of the U.S. government and the various state governments. It includes law journals, the American Jurisprudence encyclopedia, the American Law Reports, and news content.
- U.S. Congressional Serial Set: Digital Edition This link opens in a new windowA rich source of primary source material on all aspects of American history, including volumes of all the reports, documents, and journals of the US Senate and House of Representatives. Covers the years 1817-1994; see ProQuest Congressional for present day coverage.
- CQ Press Library This link opens in a new windowCQ Press is a publisher of research about the American government, politics, history, public policy, and current affairs. CQ Researcher includes reports on current affairs, social policy and other controversies back to 1923. CQ Almanac has analysis on the major legislation and actions of congress for each year since 1945. CQ Magazine provides in-depth reporting on public policy, politics, congressional legislation, and elections extending back to 1983. Other content includes Voting and Elections Collection and Politics in America.
Judicial
- Supreme Court Insight This link opens in a new windowComplete online collection of full opinions from Supreme Court argued cases, including per decision, dockets, oral arguments, joint appendices and amicus briefs. Content associated with each case is compiled on a dynamic page organized to facilitate understanding of the judicial process, and is also retrievable on a document by document basis.
- U.S. Statutes at LargeEvery law, public and private, ever enacted by the Congress is published in the Statutes at Large in order of the date of its passage. Until 1948, all treaties and international agreements approved by the Senate were also published in the set. In addition, the Statutes at Large includes the text of the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, the Constitution, amendments to the Constitution, treaties with Indians and foreign nations, and presidential proclamations. • Location(s): TC Wilson Library Gov Pub (US Ref) AE 2.111: 1789 - present.
- U.S. CodeThe US Code contains the laws of the United States arranged by subject. While there are multiple sources on the web, the GPO Access site is designated as the official source.
Historical
- HathiTrust Digital Library This link opens in a new windowA reliable and increasingly comprehensive digital archive of books and other materials converted from print that is co-owned and managed by a number of academic institutions.
Public domain works: Anyone can view and download one page at a time. Users with a current University of Minnesota login can download the full work.
Copyright protected works: Works protected by copyright will have limited access, except for users with print-reading disabilities who apply for special access to digitized works.
Additional information on accessing HathiTrust = https://www.lib.umn.edu/pim/Hathi
- History VaultContains historic and archival materials such as digitized letters, papers, photographs, scrapbooks, financial records, diaries, and other primary source materials taken from the University Publications of America (UPA) Collections. Subject areas include NAACP Papers, INS immigration records (1880-1930), Vietnam War and American Foreign Policy (1960-1975), Confidential U.S. State Department Central Files, 1960-1969, Europe and Latin America, Slavery and the Law (1775-1867), Women's Studies Manuscript Collections from the Schlesinger Library: Voting Rights, National Politics, and Reproductive Rights, and more.
- Cold War IntelligenceThis collection of 2,360 formerly classified U.S. government documents (most of them classified Top Secret or higher) provides readers with the declassified documentary record about the successes and failures of the U.S. intelligence community in its efforts to spy on the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
- Digital National Security Archive This link opens in a new windowAccess primary documents central to United States foreign and military policy since 1945. Material is arranged by topical collection produced by the National Security Archives at George Washington University. Each collection contains a diverse range of policy documents including presidential directives, memos, briefing papers, White House communications, email, confidential letters and more.
- Early American Imprints Series I: Evans (1639-1800) This link opens in a new windowEvery book, pamphlet, serial, and other printed work of significance published in America 1639 - 1800 with 36,000 items and 2.4 million page images when complete.
- Early Americas Digital Archive (EADA)Collection of electronic texts and links to texts originally written in or about the Americas from 1492 to approximately 1820.
- World News ConnectionA continuation of the materials covered by FBIS; provides access to translations of non-U.S. media sources from 1996 until ceasing compilation in Dec. 2013. An online subscription service bringing news from around the world, translated into English, typically within 24-72 hours from the time of the original publication or broadcast. The information is obtained from newspaper articles, television and radio broadcasts, online sources, conference proceedings, periodicals, and non-classified reports.
- Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Reports This link opens in a new windowAs the United States' principal historical record of political open source intelligence for more than half a century, the Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Report is an indispensable source for insights into decades of turbulent world history. The original mission of the FBIS was to monitor, record, transcribe and translate intercepted radio broadcasts from foreign governments, official news services, and clandestine broadcasts from occupied territories. Translations of broadcasts, news agency transmissions, newspapers, periodicals, and government statements from nations around the world from 1941 to 1996.
- Historical Publications of the United States Commission on Civil RightsSince its inception in 1957 the United States Commission on Civil Rights has been at the forefront of efforts by the Federal government and state governments to examine and resolve issues related to race, ethnicity, religion and, more recently, sexual orientation. The Thurgood Marshall Law Library offers access to the historical record of this important federal agency by archiving and/or digitizing many of its publications.
- Joint Publications Research Service (JPRS) Reports This link opens in a new windowCovering high-interest issues from 1957 to 1995, the JPRS Reports are English translations of foreign-language monographs, reports, serials, journal and newspaper articles, and radio and television broadcasts from regions throughout the world. The emphasis is on the communist and third-world countries of this period. The JPRS Reports also contain a wealth of hard-to-find scientific, technical, and social science materials, translated from many languages.
These reports are also available on microfiche in the Government Publications department in Wilson Library. See (US Microfiche) (Mfiche PrEx 7.22/5: )
- Making of AmericaA digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction. The collection is particularly strong in the subject areas of education, psychology, American history, sociology, religion, and science and technology. The collection currently contains approximately 10,000 books and 50,000 journal articles with 19th century imprints.
- Territorial Papers of the United States This link opens in a new windowMore than half of Americas states began as territories. From the 1760s to the 1950s the United States of America expanded southward and westward, acquiring territories that spanned from Florida to California to Alaska. Before they evolved into twenty-seven American states, these territories were managed by the U.S. State and Interior departments. The official history of their formative territorial years is recorded in the Territorial Papers of the United Statesa collection of Native American negotiations and treaties, official correspondence with the federal government, military records, judicial proceedings, population data, financial statistics, land records, and more. For the first time, the Territorial Papers are available in a digital online collection, offering unparalleled research opportunities for anyone interested in the creation of modern-day America.
- TRAIL Digitization ProjectThe Technical Report Archive & Image Library (TRAIL) identifies, acquires, catalogs, digitizes and provides unrestricted access to U.S. government agency technical reports. In recent years, the Greater Western Library Alliance has collected documents from the National Bureau of Standards (cabinet D), US Bureau of Mines (cabinet D), Atomic Energy Commission, US Bureau of Reclamation Office of Saline Waters, and the Manhattan District Classification Code. Millions of pages of elusive technical reports are now discoverable. Many of these technical reports have also been sent to the HathiTrust Digital Library.
- Library of Congress Digital CollectionsDigitized collections of historical photographs, documents, and other material documenting the history and culture of the United States
Other
- Google Patent SearchAllows for full-text searching of patent grants and applications from the United States and several other major jurisdictions.
- Federal Depository Library Program's Essential Title ListA collection of U.S. Government information resources containing critical information that the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) plans to continue disseminating in tangible format in the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP).
- Leadership Connect (formerly: Leadership Library)Leadership Connect (formerly Leadership Library) allows screening for people, companies, and organizations by type, industry, job function, geographic location, size, or keyword. Ideal for searching NGOs, government agencies, board memberships, and not-for-profit organizations.
Guides
- Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) Publications User GuideHow to find research and development reports, many from academic and research contractors.
- Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) ReportsFind translated transcripts of foreign radio and television broadcasts, news agency transmissions, newspapers, periodicals, and government statements. The reports contain political, military, economic, environmental, and sociological news and information.
- CIS Microfiche Collections Finder GuideIncludes unpublished congressional hearings.
- CIS Index to Executive Branch Documents, 1789-1909Provides access to material issued by federal departments and agencies, including annual reports, general publications, serials, instructions, rules, circulars, decisions, and registers and which were not published in the U.S. Congressional Serial Set - Digital Edition.
- CIS National Statistical CompendiumsA microfiche collection of publications of national governments (or closest equivalent) that contain yearly summary data for the country as a whole.
- Federal Scientific Agency Publications on Microform in Walter LibraryHow to locate and use the over 350,000 documents that have been reproduced as microfilm or microfiche for high-efficiency storage.
- U.S. Laws & Legislation GuideProvides the resources needed to complete a legislative history assignment or to understand how a bill became law.
Physical Resources in the Library
- What Shelf is My Book On (Wilson Library)?Use call number and location information to find government documents in Wilson Library.
- What Shelf is My Book On (Magrath Library)?Use call number and location information to find government documents in Magrath Library.
- Federal Scientific Agency Publications on Microform in Walter LibraryHow to locate and use the over 350,000 documents that have been reproduced as microfilm or microfiche for high-efficiency storage.
- Find Federal Agency Collections on CampusUse call number and agency information to find government documents collections on campus.
Wilson Library Annex
A collection of historical federal documents is housed in the Wilson Library Annex. While the collection is open to the general public, because of the fragile nature of many of the documents they may not be copied or circulated. The Wilson Annex materials additionally require making an appointment with staff in Wilson Library, wilscirc@umn.edu OR 612-624-3321.
- Sudoc TutorialA general explanation of the government documents call number system. Brief quiz and shelving exercises at the end.
Last Updated: Jul 23, 2024 2:01 PM
URL: https://libguides.umn.edu/govpubs/unitedstates2