The process by which old, little-used books and journals are selected and sent to the off-site storage facility at the Harvard Depository Library (HDL) in Southborough, Massachusetts, continues. A project at the Sciences Library to send about 14,000 back volumes of journals from discontinued titles has reached the halfway point. Selection was accomplished through a cooperative effort during which faculty and librarians reviewed and selected titles which are no longer received. These journals are being removed from the stacks title by title and are having their records in Josiah, the online catalog, changed to reflect their new location.

At the Rockefeller Library, monographs were chosen last year in a similar project, which included some review of titles by faculty. Items in selected areas of the stacks were "tagged" as potential candidates for storage so users could comment about their removal. These volumes are now also being removed, and Josiah will reflect their change in location. A second project to identify more low-use volumes is planned for this year, and will incorporate changes suggested by faculty and library staff to streamline the selection process. Special Collections materials are also being sent to the HDL on an on-going basis.

A system is in place for the retrieval of any items needed from storage. Requests for materials from the facility can be made at the Circulation Desk of the appropriate library and can usually be fulfilled within two or three working days. So far, use of the retrieval system for circulating materials has been very low. This tells us that the choices we have made for storing low-use volumes are good ones. However, any volumes sent to storage at HDL can be recalled not only for temporary use, but can also be permanently restored to the circulating collection, if necessary. Faculty may consult the library selector in the proper subject area or Bill Monroe (x2406), the Head of Collection Development, with general questions or regarding specific titles.

For more information about the storage of library materials at HDL and selection for storage or retrieval, visit the Web site at:
http://www.brown.edu/Facilities/University_Library/Storage/

--Eric Shoaf

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