Librarians' Corner

Reference Tools

• Some Handy Local History E-Resources & Links  A clickable directory, arranged from locale-centered sources to town, county, state, then nationally useful links, relating to local history.  
• Long Island & Patchogue Vertical File Subject Headings  Replace Patchogue with the  name(s) of the villages served by your library, and allowing for appropriate modifications, you have a readily adaptable set of Library of Congress Subject Headings, with local variations. Why so fine a subdivision?  It allows greater precision of access, an unexpected surprise to researchers and librarians alike, and most people are looking for something specific.  It can aid in keeping one person from monopolizing everything on a hot topic when others are clamoring for it (because it's in, or about to be in, the news, was discussed on a popular TV show, or is related to a class homework assignment.
• A Guide to Localizing Dewey for Long Island Use  Since the Dewey Decimal Classification System, in general use by public libraries, stops at the county level, information sources more local than that are scrambled by author or title.  This offers a way to unscramble them and organize them for easy access by patrons and librarians alike.  It has had a proven track record of reducing time spent in hunting down sources, while freeing more time for research.  It's not hard to explain or understand, and it works even when your computer is down.
• Long Island History Blog  Since Long Island, NY, local history does not come with a guidebook for librarians, this site is designed to offer a mix of thought pieces, practical resources, suggestions relating to dealing with the ins and outs of creating, organizing, housing, operating, administering a local history collection (or local history room), answering reference questions, suggesting a variety of ways one might approach, provide, and promote local history services and publications (in a variety of forms and formats, for a variety of uses and purposes), seasoned, e.g., with networking, grants and fundraising, the occasional commemoration, and sprinklings of pointed humor.