Microform Collections in Stauffer Library
A Microform is a photographic reproduction of any material in a size too small to be read without magnification. It provides a way for libraries to collect material too old, bulky, or valuable to collect in the original forms, for example books, periodicals, dissertations, pamphlets, newspapers, manuscripts, government documents, etc.
The most common forms are microfilm (reels) and microfiche (flat sheets).
- Microfilm is produced in long strips which are loaded onto small reels. The reels are kept in boxes, which are labelled with call numbers.
- Microfiche are transparencies that that come in either 3" x 5" or 4" x 6" sheets and are marked with call numbers, for example Microlog.
- Microcards are opaque 3" x 5" cards, now an obsolete form.
Accessing the Microform Collection
Search QCAT, the Library Catalogue, for microforms. Searching is similar to searching for items in print format. The type of microform, the location and the call number are indicated on the QCAT record. Our collection includes individual titles as well as distinct collections which may cover one or many subjects. Some large sets can be accessed either by the name of the set or the individual works in the set. In other cases only the name of the set is included in the catalogue.
Boxes and sheets of microform are shelved in call number or numerical order in filing cabinets on the lower level of Stauffer Library, on shelves at Stauffer Library Reference, or in the compact shelving section of the 4th floor of Stauffer Library.
Reading, Copying, Scanning
Equipment for reading, photocopying, and scanning microforms is available on the lower level of Stauffer Library. Consult the floor plan and the Microform printing & scanning facilities webpage (There is one opaque card viewer in the Stauffer Library Microforms area. The cards can also be viewed and rendered into a digital format on the ScanWrite ST200 Microforms scanner in the Maps and Air Photos reading room).
Assistance with finding microforms or using the equipment is provided by the Government Documents staff or the Circulation staff.
Major Collections
The following is a partial alphabetical list of major microform collections in Stauffer Library. Entries include a link to descriptions of individual collections, as well as location, call number, notes, and indexing information.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
- Anti-Slavery Collection: 18th-19th Centuries
- Archives of the Charity Organisation Society, 1869-1938
- Archives of the Shaftesbury Society, Part 1
- Archives of the Shaftesbury Society, Parts 2 & 3
- Bell Canada Directories: Ontario & Quebec
- Black Workers in the Era of the Great Migration
- British Pamphlets Relating to the American Revolution
- Early American Periodicals Index to 1850
- Early English Books, 1475-1640 (Pollard & Redgrave Collection)
- Early English Books, 1641-1700 (Wing Collection)
- Early English Newspapers
- English Literary Periodicals
- Europe and NATO: Special Studies, 1970-1980
- National Inventory of Documentary Sources in the United Kingdom
- Nuclear Weapons, Arms Control, and the Threat of Thermonuclear War: Special Studies
- Pamphlets and Journals Concerning Race Relations in South Africa (Dr. Keppel-Jones' Collection)
- Papers of the American Slave Trade
- The People's History: Working Class Autobiographies
Last Updated: 15 July 2009
