Government Information
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Ask a Librarian!
Trillian Hosticka and Angie Taliaferro
This library is a Congressionally designated depository for U.S. Government documents. Public access to the Government information is guaranteed by public law.
Shannon Library is the Regional Federal Depository Library for Virginia, and a depository for Virginia, the United Nations, and the European Union. Government documents can be checked out like other library materials. Knowledgeable staff are happy to assist you in your research.
In 2018, documents from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and portions of the Navy documents and microfiche were moved from the Regional Depository at the University of Virginia to the Perry Library at Old Dominion University. Besides being located in Norfolk, VA with its maritime interests, ODU is also an ASERL Center of Excellence for Navy and NOAA government documents. These documents and microfiche from NOAA and the Navy supplement and enhance ODU's existing government information collection to create a comprehensive collection for researchers interested in these areas.
Accessing Documents Held at ODU
The records for these documents have been removed from UVA's online catalog and will soon be made available in ODU's catalog. They can also be accessed in person at the Perry Library or requested via interlibrary loan (if you are not affiliated with UVA, please ask at your local library about this service).
Visiting ODU's Library
ODU's Perry Library is located at 4427 Hampton Blvd. Norfolk, VA 23529 with parking nearby. There are some restrictions on borrowing for non-ODU affiliated patrons, but all are welcome to visit the library and do research on site. If you have any questions about accessing their collection, reference help is available via chat, e-mail, or phone.
What is a Center of Excellence?
The Association of South Eastern Research Libraries (ASERL) has created a Collaborative Federal Depository Program. Centers of Excellence support this program by "adopting" an agency and acquiring documents produced by this agency to create as complete a collection as possible. Centers of Excellence actively seek out new or missing material to add to their collection, provide preservation and cataloging for these documents, and provide increased access to these documents through interlibrary loan services to other institutions. They are intended to create collections that researchers can use knowing these are the most complete collections of documents by or about these agencies within the ASERL region.
For more information, use the following links: