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- BGSU Libraries CatalogStart by searching this catalog to see if BGSU owns the document. All of the documents in our Canadian, Ohio, and Bowling Green documents collections have been cataloged. However, not all U.S. government documents have been cataloged. You will also find links to online government information in the catalog.
- OhioLINK Central CatalogIf BGSU doesn't own documents on your topic, try the OhioLINK Central Catalog. It contains the holdings of the libraries at more than 80 colleges and universities throughout Ohio, many of which have government documents collections.
- Catalog of U.S. Government PublicationsDescriptions of publications issued by the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the U.S. government and links to those that are available online.
- ProQuest CongressionalProQuest Congressional is a comprehensive database that searches across current and historical documents of the United States Congress, many of which are included in full text. It includes the U.S. Serial Set (the published working papers of Congress), Congressional Hearings, the Congressional Record (through 1997) and hundreds of thousands of House and Senate reports, State of the Union messages, Congressional journals, hearings, high-resolution maps, and more.
Other Useful Databases & Internet Sites
- Air University Library Index to Military Periodicals (AULIMP)Citations to significant articles, news items, and editorials published in English-language military and aeronautical periodicals since 1988.
- American State Papers, 1789-1838Important executive and legislative documents issued between 1789 and 1838, including every legislative and executive document of the first fourteen U.S. Congresses.
- Audiovisual Library of International LawIncludes texts, videos, etc. about international legal instruments promulgated by the United Nations. Includes videos of legal lectures, texts of treaties and laws, documents about these instruments, and links to sites with other resources about international law.
- Checklist of United States Public Documents, 1789-1909Checklist is arranged by classification number and is useful for examining the scope of a particular agency's publishing from the time it was established through 1909.
- Congress.govA free web site, provided by the Library of Congress, that includes searchable databases of Congressional documents, such as bills, reports, floor proceedings, and public laws.
- Congressional Record (Bound Edition) 1873-2001, 2005-2009This is a freely available edition of the bound Congressional Record. The BGSU Libraries also have access to the Congressional Record in the ProQuest Congressional database.
- govinfo (formerly FDSYS)govinfo is a service of the United States Government Publishing Office (GPO) which provides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government.
- Government of Canada PublicationsA search engine for Canadian government documents, including those that are full text on the Internet.
- HeinOnline U.S. Statutes at LargeFull-text searchable images of every page of the Statutes at Large in PDF format, beginning in 1789. Also includes earlier Federal Codes, Compilations of Statutes, and other related documents.
- Homeland Security Digital Library (HSDL)Thousands of U.S. policy documents, presidential directives, and national strategy documents related to homeland security, as well as specialized resources from universities, organizations, and local and state agencies.
- LLMC Digital Law LibraryHistorical legal titles and government documents from around the world, with a focus on U.S. federal and state material.
- Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government PublicationsCommonly referred to as the Monthly Catalog or MoCat, this publication lists all of the publications produced by the U.S. Government Printing Office from 1895 to 2004. Initially intended to supplement the Documents Catalog, the Monthly Catalog served as the “comprehensive index” provided for in the Printing Act of 1895 after the Documents Catalog was discontinued in 1947. The Monthly Catalog was discontinued with the December 2004 edition, after which point the continuously updated Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP) served that purpose.
Web Sites With Historical Documents Collections
This is just a small sample of the many web sites that include or index historical government documents:
- CyberCemeteryan archive of government websites that have ceased operation (usually websites of defunct government agencies and commissions that have issued a final report).
- GovernmentAttic.orgA site that provides access to electronic government documents that were acquired due to a Freedom of Internet Act request.
- LegisLink: Reasonable Urls to Cite LegislationLinks to public laws 1789-present, Statutes at Large 1789-present, bills 1995-present, roll call votes 1941-present, etc.
- United Nations Security Council ResolutionsResolutions from 1946-present
- United Nations Treaty CollectionSearchable database of U.N. treaties. This also includes treaties of the League of Nations.
Laws of the Thirteen Colonies
To find laws of the thirteen colonies, see:
Useful Print Indexes
- Cumulative Subject Index to the Monthly Catalog of U. S. Government Publications, 1900 to 1971, 14Call Number: GOV DOCS REF Z1223.A1973x v.1-15ISBN: 9780840800015Publication Date: 1975-01-01
Cumulative Title Index to United States Public Documents, 1789-1976 by Call Number: GOV DOCS REF Z1223.Z7 L47 J83 v.1-16ISBN: 0882220349Publication Date: 1978-03-01
Documents Collections
The BGSU Libraries house collections of United States, Ohio, Wood County, and Bowling Green government documents. For more information, see: