What Can U.S. Government Information Do for Me?

The United States government is one of the world’s largest publishers, printing and distributing a wealth of information including resources on American history, crime and justice data, contextualized government images, census data, genealogy research and much more. To serve patrons, library personnel must remain knowledgeable about U.S. government resources, agencies, departments, and websites.
Aimed at librarians and library personnel from all types of libraries, and at researchers, this practical, hands-on volume is a useful resource for learning how to find and apply information from the wealth of U.S. government resources. It aids in answering various types of patron questions, performing community outreach, engaging in civic activities, serving business patrons, and providing classroom instruction. Readers will learn to discover the government’s “hidden” information treasures and how to implement and adapt these resources in any library environment.

Tom Diamond is the collections and materials selector librarian at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. His published monographs include coverage of the tobacco industry and middle management in academic and public libraries. He is a member of the American Library Association.

Dominique Hallett is the government information and STEM librarian at Arkansas State University, as well as serving as adjunct instructor at University of Illinois teaching the Government Documents course.

Edited by Tom Diamond and Dominique Hallett
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 309
Bibliographic Info: 39 photos, appendices, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2023
pISBN: 978-1-4766-8949-4
eISBN: 978-1-4766-4958-0
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments v
Introduction
Tom Diamond and Dominique Hallett 1
Part I. General
The United States Congressional Serial Set: A Rich Primary Resource of American History
Claudene Sproles and Amy Laub 9
Department of State and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Elisabeth Pearson Garner 20
Discovering Crime and Justice Data on Government Websites
Ariana Baker and Allison Faix 29
What’s in a Policy? Government Information Resources to Help Inform Policy Analysis and Research
Amanda McLeod 39
Finding and Contextualizing Government Images
Jennifer Castle 50
Part II. Education
A Guide to the U.S. Census for History Teachers
Nicole Wood 69
Back to School: Education and Teaching Resources from the U.S. Government
Emily Rogers and Laurie Aycock 85
Financial Literacy 101: Combating Misinformation and Debt with Freely Available Government Resources
Caterina M. Reed 98
Part III. Genealogy
Using Federal Government Documents for Genealogy Research
Jennifer Crowder Daugherty and Andrew Grace 111
Geography and Genealogy: Using Maps and Aerial Imagery from Government Agencies for Genealogical Research
Kelly Bilz 126
Part IV. Health and Social Programs
Learning the Basics of Social Programs and Services Through Federal Government Sources
Angela L. Bonnell 143
Public Resources for Public Health
Emily Alford 154
Finding and Using Federal Information Relevant to People with Disabilities
Isabella Folmar and Blake Robinson 167
Part V. Military
From Service Records to Special Collections: General and Specialized Military Resources
Heather Seminelli and Lauren B. Dodd 179
Using Government Sources to Support Military Queries in Academic Libraries
Michelle Shea 190
Part VI. Native Americans and the Federal Government
Native American History from Government Documents and Maps
Brandon R. Burnette 203
Researching Indian Treaties and Other Related Documents: An Annotated Bibliography
Connie Strittmatter 216
Part VII. Science
Finding Current and Historical Weather Data
Claudene Sproles and Angel Clemons 233
National Park Service: The Importance of Place
Connie Hamner Williams 244
Government Information Resources from the U.S. Department of Energy
Mark Love 258
Science Images and Where to Find Them
Nathan A. Smith 268
About the Contributors 281
Index 285