The Library is prohibited by law from working on privately owned collections and does not have the equipment necessary to perform such procedures. There are commercial deacidification vendors available, who are quite willing to handle private collections and small quantities of books as needed by the general public.

The Library serves as the research arm of Congress and is recognized as the national library of the United States. Its collections comprise the world's most comprehensive record of human creativity and knowledge. Open to those above high school age without charge or special permission, it is the world's largest library and a great resource to scholars and researchers.

The Library has in its collections well over 100 million items, in hundreds of different languages and virtually every format--not just books and journals, but also prints, drawings, government documents, photographs, microforms, films, sound and video recordings, manuscripts, and other formats. As large and diverse as the Library's collections are, it does not have every book ever published.

Mystic Publishers provides this service as part of our Basic Package or as an ? la carte service. By copywriting your book, you protect the text, photographs, drawings and maps. You cannot copyright a book title, names or short phrases. Filing with the Copyright Office establishes a public record of your copyright claim. One copy (1) of the raw manuscript, or two (2) copies of your completed book are required for registration. You may file for copyright yourself, if you would like, at www.

The Library is directed by the Librarian of Congress, who is appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by a vote of the Senate. Since the Library's founding in 1800, there have been 13 Librarians of Congress, including the incumbent, James H. Billington, who was sworn in on September 14, 1987.

Some 500,000 requests are received annually by the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the part of the Library that serves Congress. Staffed by specialists on a wide variety of topics, CRS supplies Congress with unbiased information on a wide variety of subjects. Another department of the Library that works closely with Congress is the Law Library. With collections in foreign, international and comparative law, it serves as the foreign law research arm of Congress.

The highlight of a visit to the Library of Congress is the glorious Great Hall of the Thomas Jefferson Building, which rises 75 feet from marble floor to stained glass ceiling. Marble columns, staircases, mosaics and paintings make this one of the most beautiful public buildings in America. Visitors may also view a 12-minute film about the Library of Congress in the Visitors' Center of the Jefferson Building.

Some of the most historic and treasured items from the Library's vast collection are on display on a rotating basis in the new "Treasures Gallery" located in the Southwest Gallery and Pavilion on the second floor of the Great Hall. Individual items will change from time to time for preservation reasons. The Gutenberg Bible and the Giant Bible of Mainz are on permanent display on the first floor of the Great Hall.

Throughout its history, the Library has been enriched by private citizens through the donation of collections, including manuscripts, books, audio, video, and film recordings, photographs and prints, maps, and musical scores, as well as financial gifts. If you are interested in making a gift to the Library, our Development Office will be happy to discuss this with you. More information...

The Library of Congress does not sell books from its collections. See your local librarian or a book dealer in your area to find information on how to purchase books; or consult an online database with information on purchasing books, such as Bookfinder.com. The Library does photocopy materials from its collections within copyright guidelines; see above under question "20" for more information on photocopying materials.

We usually request and receive a Library of Congress Control Number and this number is printed on the copyright page of every book we publish. However, this does not guarantee that the Library of Congress will list, or stock, your book. They have recently instituted a new program and each book is evaluated by their selection committee before making the decision to list, or stock it.

Mundania Press does not pay advances against royalties. We do pay quarterly royalties on all sales in accordance with our sample publishing contract.

Yes, if you want one. We strongly recommend that the author pay for this registration which will list your title nationally, through libraries, and apart from retail and wholesale book distributors.

Over half of the book and serial collections are in languages other than English. More than 460 languages and several scripts are represented.

Prior to travel, researchers planning international field study can use the resources of the Library to obtain current information about their destination that will help to establish a more focused plan of action so that they get the most value from the time spent abroad In addition, for many areas of the world, the Library's collections are more accessible or better preserved than they are in the country of origin.

The Library uses the full range of traditional methods of conservation and binding as well as newer technologies such as the deacidification of paper and the digitization of original materials to preserve its collections.

The American Memory project to present digitized versions of American historical materials provides many examples of texts, photographs, sound recordings, and other materials from our collections. Many Library of Congress publications are available in full text online, such as the Handbook for Latin American Studies and Federal Research Division Country Studies/Area Handbooks. Some of the Library's exhibitions are also available on the Internet.

If the engineer hits the brakes at 55 mph, the train may travel another mile and a half before coming to a stop." quot;Stop, Look & Listen!" – Be safe at railroad grade crossings!!! – "a train versus a vehicle is like a car versus a soda can!"

On May 15, 1998, following a competitive procurement process, the Library of Congress awarded a contract to Endeavor Information Systems of Des Plaines, IL, for its Voyager integrated library system (ILS) software (for further information, see the press release). The Library began using the Voyager software for its ILS on August 16, 1999 for its cataloging operations and has added additional modules since.

The Library of Congress Online Catalog is available using the World Wide Web at http://catalog.loc.gov/

The Library's collection of serial publication, numbering over 200,000 titles, covers a span of three centuries. Presently, holdings information is recorded in manual card files. Adding holdings to the Online Catalog's records for each title is a massive undertaking. Beginning October 1, 1999, Library staff will be checking in new serial issues as they are received, starting with a few titles and then gradually adding more until all current receipts are checked in.

The Library of Congress completes bibliographic cataloging for materials that are collected by LC which provides for the identification, description, and access to items in the collections. (Works deposited for copyright registration are also cataloged following copyright cataloging procedures.) All types of materials in the Library of Congress' collections are cataloged, covering hundreds of different languages and virtually every format.

LC's Cataloging Distribution Service publishes the Library of Congress Rule Interpretations (LCRI). LCRI is formulated by the Cataloging Policy and Support Office and edited by Robert M. Hiatt.

The Library of Congress does not provide individuals with information on the current market value of books. Such a search would require extensive examination of published sources, and the results would not necessarily indicate the price that the item in your possession would bring in the market. Standard reference sources on book prices, available in most large libraries, contain records of auction sales and may list pertinent transactions.

The Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN) is a unique identification number assigned by the Library of Congress to the catalog record it creates for each book in its catalog system used by most libraries. While assignment of a number does not guarantee libraries will acquire your book, libraries seldom acquire books without an LCCN or CIP data. For a $50.00 fee we will arrange for assignment of an LCCN to your book and submit a copy of it to the Library of Congress.

Thomas S. Foley - Member, United States House of Representative for the Fifth District of the state of Washington, 1965-1994 and more (perhaps not famous but certainly interesting and valuable) in Manuscripts and Special Collections

In addition to being "year-2000" compliant, the new Library of Congress Online Catalog replaces many of the Library's older, separate automated systems -- some of which date back to the late 1960s and early 1970s -- with a single, client/server system that supports all standard library operations, including acquisitions, cataloging, inventory and serials control, circulation, and the online public catalog.