UCD Library-UCD School of History & Archives
Information Resources Policy Document
2010
Image from the Beranger Watercolours held in UCD Library Special Collections
1
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
UCD School of History & Archives
Library Information Resources Policy
Contents
Page Number
Introduction
2
Profile of the School of History & Archives
2
Scope of History Collection
3
Library Budget
Selection of Resources
5
Relationships with other Schools, Colleges and Universities
7
Special Collections
8
Donations
9
Library Support for Resource Use
9
Stock Review
9
Future Considerations
9
Review of Policy
10
Contributors
10
Appendices
11
2
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
UCD School of History & Archives
Liaison Librarian: Tony Eklof
1.0 Introduction
The Information Resources Policy for the UCD School of History & Archives is
designed to facilitate successful partnership between UCD Library and the School in
the selection, management and promotion of information resources supporting the
teaching and research interests of the School.
1.1 Application
This policy will inform School and Library decision-making in recommending items
for purchase or de-selection. The identification and implementation of key
procedures and mechanisms will enable constructive review of existing resources as
well as the selection of new resources targeted at areas of strategic growth in School
teaching, learning and research.
1.2 Audience
The policy is aimed at academic and research staff from the UCD School of
History & Archives and relevant staff from UCD Library.
1.3 Policy Summary
This policy outlines procedures for selection, de-selection and purchase of resources.
Information on the HEA-IReL initiative is provided and the range of resources, as well
as the scope of the collections, available to members of the School is described.
Interdisciplinary relationships between the UCD School of History & Archives and
related schools are identified and library support for resource use to promote teaching
and learning opportunities are outlined. Details of the Library budget are itemised and
future trends which may impact on resource provision are included. The policy will be
reviewed regularly by School staff and the Liaison Librarian.
2.0 Profile of the UCD School of History & Archives
With 27 permanent historians, 6 archivists, 2 visiting and 3 adjunct professors,
assisted by 2 administrators, the School of History and Archives offers the broadest
range of research and teaching expertise and resources in the state. The School is
unique in having the largest and most-significant non-state repository in the country,
principally devoted to twentieth century Irish history.
The Micheál O Clérigh Institute has been instrumental in bringing key documents in
the early modern history of Ireland to the university, notably the Annals of the Four
Masters. The Micheál O Clérigh Institute, the Centre for the History of Medicine, the
Irish States Project and the War Studies Centre, all host post-doctoral research
fellowships, as well as research seminars and conferences. The School also offers
the only internationally recognised diploma in archivistics in the country.
3
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
2.2 Other Users
Courses offered by the School have among the highest levels of uptake in the
university at undergraduate (both in the College of Arts and beyond), graduate and
international levels. The School also contributes to the Irish Studies Programme. We
have the largest cohort of graduate students at MA and PhD levels in the College.
3.0 Scope
The scope of the collection of resources will reflect the School’s teaching and
research activities and resource management will be facilitated by the relationship
between the School and the Liaison Librarian.
3.1 Subject Coverage
Course offerings and staff research interests can be found on the School’s website at
www.ucd.ie/ The School’s major research strengths are expressed under four major
research themes:
 identity and conflict;
 communication and textual culture;
 religion, ideology and society; health,
 welfare and public policy.
They incorporate the research interests of the Micheál O Clérigh Institute, the Centre
for the History of Medicine, the Irish States Project, the War Studies and Media
History Centres.
The School has developed significant expertise in the application of digital
humanities to the study of history, notably in the field of early modern history (history
of the book, and the Irish Wild Geese project). The School is a key driver in UCD’s
digital humanities strategy; our respositories contribute up to 40 percent of the
content on the IRVLA.
3.2 Location
The majority of physical history resources are located on Level 2 of the James
Joyce Library. A large number of the most popular history books are held in the
Short Loan Collection (SLC) on the ground floor of the James Joyce Library. A
number of pamphlets with relevance to history are held in the James Joyce Library
Store. Other UCD library branches also contain small collections of history
material, for example, resources relevant to the history of medicine may be located
in the Health Sciences Library. All UCD students and staff in possession of a valid
student or staff card can access and borrow from any of these branch libraries.
3.3 Classification
UCD Library uses the Dewey Decimal Classification system to catalogue and classify
material in all formats. The primary classification range for history is 900-999. Some
materials of relevance to history are shelved at different shelf marks.
3.4 Chronology
4
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
Resources currently include material from the early medieval to the modern era.
They include both printed primary sources for medieval Europe and Ireland, press
and pamphlet literature for late 18th and 19th century France, as well as secondary
sources.
3.5 Geographical
The holdings are richest in Irish history, reflecting the library’s status as a legal
deposit centre. However, an attempt has been made to cover other areas, notably
Europe (France, Britain, Italy, Russia), America, and Australia. Visiting professors
and their embassies (including those of the US, Australia, Austria Canada, and
Japan) have assisted in the development of the collections in these fields by their
generous donations.
3.6 Dissertations and theses In accordance with university regulations, the
Library receives copies of all major doctoral and research theses submitted to
University College Dublin. The collection comprises mainly doctoral and Master's
theses by research. For more information, see the Library website at http://www.
ucd . ie/library/services_&_facilities/library_collections/theses.html
3.7 History Reference Resources The reference collection for the School
provides both print and electronic resources and reflects the Library’s policy
requirement (UCD Library Information Resources Development Policy section 3.2.1
at www.ucd. ie/library/about/policiesandregulations/index.html) “to increasingly
make information resources (notably…reference materials) available
electronically”. The history reference section is located on Level 2 of the James
Joyce Library, and contains dictionaries, encyclopedias, as well as other materials.
A particularly valuable reference work is the new Dictionary of Irish Biography and
the Library has both hardcopy and electronic versions.
3.7.1 The Medieval Studies Library. The Medieval Studies Library, a valuable
research resource, is located in a closed access area, on Level 3 of the James
Joyce Library. This Library represents the private collections of major medieval
scholars including Fr. Tom Dunning, his brother Fr. Patrick Dunning, Denis Bethell,
and Fr. M.B.(Bertie) Crowe.
An Author and Title printed catalogue of the collection is available. Contact the
Liaison Librarian for access to this Library.
3.7.2 Historical Source Material (HSM) This reference only collection represents
an invaluable resource for history researchers, and has publications from the Irish
Manuscripts Commission, the Great Britain Public Record Office and other
publishers. Examples of materials held in the HSM area are the Annals of the
Kingdom of Ireland by the Four Masters, the Calendar of State Papers-Ireland,
English Historical Documents, and Documents on British Foreign Policy.
HSM material published pre-1850 is held in UCD Library Special Collections on
Level 1.
3.8 Legal Deposit The Copyright Act 1963 designates UCD Library as a legal
5
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
deposit library for printed material published in the Republic of Ireland. These
items are integrated into the relevant Library’s collections wherever possible or
stored in closed access.
4.0 Budget
A resource allocation model (RAM) divides library funding among the schools and
across funds to maximize the purchase of targeted items to support both research and
teaching. The fund designation for the School of History and Archives is currently as
follows:

A reading list fund: to purchase items on reading and resource lists for modules
across UCD

A research monograph fund: to purchase monographs required for research
areas represented within the 5 Colleges of UCD

A general fund: to purchase items which are not represented by either the
Research fund or the Reading List fund but which would materially enhance
the teaching and research work of the school. Purchases may include
electronic resources not requiring yearly subscriptions.
Other sources of funding:
(a) A number of multi-disciplinary electronic resources are purchased via a top-sliced
Library fund dedicated to the purchasing of items not tied to the teaching or research
of one particular school
(b)The Irish Research e-Library (IReL) funds a number of significant databases of
relevance to the School, including... Payment for IReL funded resources does not
come out of the School’s budget. (See also page 8 and Appendix 1 for a full listing of
School of History relevant IReL resources). Further information on IReL is available
on its website at http://www.irelibrary.ie
5.0 Selection of Resources
School-Library Liaison Representative (SLLR): Dr. Judith Devlin
5.1 Partnership between School and Library The SLLR will work closely with the
Liaison Librarian to co-ordinate library purchases across the School, in consultation
with colleagues from the School of History & Archives . The purchase of materials in
all formats will be based on a proactive partnership to ensure an up-to-date,
balanced and representative collection.
5.2 Procedure for purchase
Please see Appendix 2 for a diagram illustrating the book ordering process.
6
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
5.2.1 Items recommended for purchase should contain as much detail as possible
including title, author, date, publisher and ISBN. Requests to support the School’s
teaching and learning must specify the name of the academic concerned, module
name, the estimated number of students taking the module, programme name and
year of the programme.
5.2.2 Research material: Material required to support School research will be
purchased when possible. Purchase requests will be based on the research interests
of the School staff and on the professional expertise and knowledge of the Liaison
Librarian.
5.2.3 Module and Programme support: The Library will continue to actively review
its resources to ensure that modules and programmes at undergraduate and
postgraduate level are adequately supported and that the impact on library resources
can be correctly assessed. To ensure the timely purchase of resources, the Liaison
Librarian will need to be informed as soon as possible about the following:





The introduction of new modules
Any modification to existing modules
The introduction of new programmes
Current modules on offer in each programme for the new academic year
The introduction of new methods of teaching (e.g. Enquiry-Based Learning)
The Liaison Librarian monitors usage of the collection and will order
replacement/extra copies of items due to:
 Damage
 Loss or theft
 Multiple requests for an item over a short period of time
 User need based on information received from Information Desk, Library
Suggestion Books and online queries
5.2.4 Reading list items
Reading lists will be given to the Liaison Librarian prior to the start of each semester,
using the agreed procedures for collection of module reading lists. Where possible,
items on reading lists will be purchased and placed in the most appropriate collection
area (General collection or long loan, Week loan, or Short Loan Collection), depending
on class size and numbers of copies. For items that are difficult to source or quite
expensive, the “4Here” Collection, formerly called the Reserve Collection (i.e. Library
use only) will be used. Items will be moved between collections, as required, to
facilitate maximum use of resources by users.
The average turn-around time for ordered items to appear in the Library is 4-6 weeks.
The Liaison Librarian will also facilitate the purchase of urgent items when necessary.
Requests for reading list items should be made in a timely fashion to ensure that items
are available to users once the semester begins. At present, there are some financial
constraints in the library budget as a result of university cutbacks and the wider
national economic situation. The School will be kept informed of the library’s financial
situation and included in the strategies used to purchase and maintain resources.
5.2.5 Multimedia materials:
Based on School requests and in support of the UCD Library’s Information
Resources Policy (section 5.1), the Liaison Librarian will facilitate the purchase of
7
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
relevant multi media material and this currently includes the purchase of DVDs.
5.2.6 Electronic Resources
As identified in UCD Library’s Information Resources policy, it is Library strategy to
move towards electronic information provision where possible. The Liaison Librarian
and academics in the School of History & Archives will continue to identify relevant
electronic databases which support the work of the school.
Most library electronic material is available both on and off campus via Findit @
UCD Library.
 Individual databases and electronic journals are accessible in an A-Z listing
via Findit by selecting the Database and Journals tabs.
 Electronic material is also available via the “My Library” tab in UCD Connect.
 View relevant material via the history subject portal on the UCD Library
website: http://www.ucd.ie/library/subject_portals/hist_arch/index.html
5.2.7 Irish Research e-Library (IReL)
UCD Library users have benefitted from the availability of electronic resources
provided by the IReL initiative, a joint funding initiative by Science Foundation Ireland
(SFI) and the Higher Education Authority (HEA) to substantially increase the range of
resources available to Irish university libraries.
These IReL funded resources are reviewed regularly, and subscriptions are based on
a “value for money” model – using usage statistics as a measure of “value”. Ongoing
promotion of these resources to students and staff, by both the School of History &
Archives and UCD Library is therefore required to maximize usage and so ensure,
where possible, continual funding of these resources by IReL.
Databases, of particular relevance to School of History &
Archives, funded by IReL
ACLS Humanities E-Book
Academic Search Premier
Arts & Humanities Citation Index
International Medieval Bibliography
Cambridge Journals Online
Historical Abstracts
JSTOR
Oxford Reference Online
Project Muse
A complete list of IReL funded resources can be found at:
http://www.ucd.ie/library/electronic_resources/irel
Appendix 1 also lists multi-disciplinary resources funded by IReL that may also be of
benefit to the School of History and Archives.
5.2.8 Journals:
To ensure that journal titles to which the School subscribes reflect current teaching and
research interests, print and electronic subscriptions will be reviewed as required, but
at a minimum of every five years. Interdisciplinary resources, of interest to the School,
8
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
accessible via IReL or funded by other Schools may not be cancelled by the School of
History & Archives. The review process will be a collaborative endeavour between the
Liaison Librarian and the School representative and will consider:






Current holdings
School teaching and research interests
Impact factors
Online availability
Cost
Savings
Requests for purchase will mirror the review criteria above. When suggesting a journal
title for purchase, please provide the Liaison Librarian with the journal name, subject
matter and intended audience. In keeping with Library policy (Information Resources
Policy, 3.2 and 3.3), new titles are purchased in electronic format where possible.
6. 0 Relationships with other Schools, Colleges and Universities
6.1 Internal :The School collaborates with the Humanities Institute of Ireland, the
Clinton Institute, the Global Irish Institute in joint research initiatives and with the
College of Arts Research strand on Death and Culture, as well as contributing to the
interdisciplinary Irish Studies programme.
The Library provides subject and liaison support for a range of subjects of relevance
to the School of History and Archives including:Archaeology, Irish, English and Film
Studies, Politics, Sociology, Classics, Art History, Modern Languages, Music,
Philosophy and Law. The School has the largest cohort of graduate students and
post-doctoral research fellows in the College of Arts, as well as several Research
Centres.
Of special interst to the Centre for the History of Medicine is the development of the
Special Collections holdings of the former College of Science.The School and
Library will seek to ensure that research resources have sufficient breadth and depth
to meet their requirements.
6.2 External.
The School collaborates with a number of national and international centres of
learning. Among these are:



the Centre for the History of Medicine’s joint projects with the Universities of
Ulster, Warwick and Maastricht;
the Centre for the History of the Media with the University of St Andrews on
the history of the book;
the O’Clerigh Institute with the University of Louvain.
In addition, the School seeks to enhance its wider social impact through such
initiatives as Professor D. Ferriter’s recent series of programmes on modern Irish
history broadcast by RTE.
9
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
7.0 Special Collections
Special Collections contains items inherited by UCD’s antecedent institutions, the
Catholic University of Ireland, Royal University of Ireland and the Royal College of
Science for Ireland. Much of the material inherited from these institutions is historical
in nature. UCD Library also inherited the manuscript collections of the Catholic
University of Ireland and the map collections of the antecedent institutions.. In
addition to this material it holds various named collections which were purchased
from, or donated by individuals. Some of these collections contain material of an
historical nature.
Link to the History section in Special Collections:
http://www.ucd.ie/library/special_collections/printed_collection/subject_collection/history.html
Special Collections contains:
 Printed books published before 1851.
 Printed pamphlets published before 1948
 Named collections spanning17th -20th centuries
 Manuscript collections
 Maps – 16th 20th century
 Parliamentary Journals and Statutes from from the 17th and 18th centuries.
Subjects covered include:
 Irish military history
 Cromwellian Ireland
 Irish opposition to the Act of Union
 French revolution
 19th century Irish Social history
 History of Medicine in Ireland
 History of the book
 Irish print history
 Crime in Ireland
 Revolution in Ireland – 1916 - 22
 History of Dublin
 Local history from all Irish counties
 19th century tours of Ireland
 Irish labour history
 Legal history - 17-19th centuries
 Irish folklore
Named collections useful for history:
 O’Kelley – General Irish history, local history, Irish print history
 Patrick Power – Rare editions relating to catholic ireland and general Irish
history 16th -19th centuries
 Thomas Johnson –Political pamphlets, mainly late 19th-early 20th relating to
labour and socialist politics in Ireland, conscription and civil war.
 Christopher Palles - Books and journals of a legal nature covering the period
from the 17th to the early 20th century. It is most useful for the study of Irish
legal history for this period.
10
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
Parliamentary Journals and Statutes, 17th and 18th centuries: Journals of the
House of Commons of the Kingdom of Ireland, (series 1 ,2 ,3 & 4), the Journals of the
House of Lords of the Kingdom of Ireland and the Statutes at Large.
http://www.ucd.ie/library/special_collections/printed_collection/subject_collection/history.html
7.1 UCD Archives contains and preserves papers and manuscripts of national
significance and is of particular interest to research in modern Irish history. For
example, it contains the papers of Eamon de Valera, Michael Collins, Garrett
FitzGerald and Eoin MacNeill.
It includes material of key interest to medieval and early modern Irish historians,
notably the Annals of the Four Masters. Library resources are required to underpin
these endeavours.
7.2 Irish Virtual Research Library and Archive (IVRLA)
IRVLA facilitates access to material through the ongoing digitisation of key elements
of UCD’s Special Collections. Items of interest to the School include the De Valera
and Collins’ papers. The School is a key driver in UCD’s digital humanities strategy;
our respositories contribute up to 40 percent of the content on the IRVLA.
8.0 Donations
The School of History and Archives has actively supported UCD Library in its collection
development by donating new and relevant books.
The Australian and Canadian embassies in Ireland have both generously supported
the development of the history collection.
The following donations of material are welcome:


Books / book collections to supplement and/or augment holdings in the
General Collection.
Rare books, signed books and first editions to strengthen Special
Collection holdings
The Library will manage the donated material as appropriate and as reflected in the
UCD Library’s Donations policy at:
http://www.ucd.ie/library/services_&_facilities/library_collections/donated_materials.
htm
9.0 Library Support for resource use
The Library is committed to supporting the promotion and use of all information
resources. To this end, the Liaison Librarian will continue to work with library
colleagues and academics including the Special Collections Librarian, to maximise
exploitation of key historical sources using accepted international frameworks for
information skills delivery to support undergraduate teaching, academic research and
11
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
postgraduate studies. The Liaison Librarian will continue to highlight relevant free
sources available electronically, such as the European Library with its permanent
Napoleonic Wars exhibition and CELT the free digital humanities resource for Irish
history.
The Library will work with the School to:




Identify the level and detail of training required
Identify a suitable place within the timetable to deliver training at point of need
Identify the most suitable delivery mechanism
Evaluate the training’s impact on assignment quality via assessment
10.0 Stock Review
In line with UCD Library policy (section 12.2 of the Information Resources
Development Policy), print resources are reviewed regularly to ensure currency and
relevance. As a result, decisions will be made in conjunction with the School regarding
the permanent disposal of items, as well as the removal of items from the open
shelves to closed storage.
11.0 Future Considerations
The Library is committed to aligning the provision of information resources to the
strategic priorities of the School. Identification of best practice will facilitate effective
resource management to support the teaching and research of the School.
Issues impacting on current planning include:




Future trends in historical research
The development of inter-disciplinary and thematic research
The development of new programmes.
The provision of lifelong learning and information skills to library users
12.0 Review of Policy
This policy is intended to be an active document designed to help with information
resource development and assessment in support of School teaching and research
priorities. The Head of School (or the designated School of History and Archives
liaison person) and the liaison librarian will review this document on an ongoing basis
to ensure its relevance to School interests. The liaison librarian (Tony Eklof
tony.eklof@ucd.ie) welcomes comments and suggestions regarding the evolution of
this policy
Policy created: August
September, 2010
12
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
13.0 Contributors
UCD School of History & Archives
UCD Library
Dr. Judith Devlin
Professor Edward James (Head of
School)
Dr. Lindsey Earner-Byrne
Tony Eklof, Liaison Librarian
Evelyn Flanagan, Special Collections
Librarian
Ursula Byrne, Head of Academic Library
Services for Humanities, Social Sciences
and Business & Law
13
UCD Library / UCD School of History & Archives: Information Resources Policy
Appendices
Appendix 1 IReL Resources of Interest to the School of History & Archives
(see also section 5.2.7)
HeinOnline
Legal research database, specialising in long out-of-print legal material. Hein’s “Law
Journal Library” includes more than 1,200 law and law-related periodicals.
Index to Theses
Indexes theses accepted for higher degrees by the Universities of Great Britain
and Ireland. Abstracts of PhD theses are included from 1970 onwards. Time
span: theses accepted since 1716
Irish Newspapers Archive
The world's largest online database of Irish newspapers from which it is possible
to search, retrieve and view Ireland's past in the exact format it was published.
Contains many of Ireland's most prominent regional, daily and out of print titles.
Irish Times Digital Archive
A fully searchable digital archive containing every page of The Irish Times
published since the newspaper's foundation 1859-2009
Justis
Justis Publishing Ltd is an independent publisher of electronic legal information,
concentrating in particular on United Kingdom and European Union legal, official
and business information. Includes the “Irish Reports” law publication.
Lexis Library
Legal database featuring case law, legislation, and journal articles from the UK,
US and other jurisdictions. Includes Irish reported and unreported case law.
Making of Modern Law
Thomson Gale has digitized two entire treatise collections to create The Making
of Modern Law (MOML). The content reflects primary documents contained within
Primary Source Microfilm's Nineteenth Century Legal Treatises and Twentieth
Century Legal Treatises collections. MOML gives access to 10.6 million pages of
legal history relating to American and British Commonwealth law between the
years 1900 to 1926 and is the world's most comprehensive full-text collection or
rare Anglo-American legal treatises anywhere
Nexis UK
Global news and business information service with over 20,000 sources of
authoritative news, company, financial and market research data. Contains full
text of the best known newspapers in the world, and over 50 Irish national and
regional newspapers, including the Irish Times, Irish Independent and Sunday
Business Post.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
A collection of 55,000 specially written biographies, which describe the lives of
people who shaped the history of the British Isles and beyond
14
UCD Library / UCD School of Law: Information Resources Policy
Oxford English Dictionary
The accepted authority on the evolution of the English language over the last
millennium
Oxford Journals Online
Provides full text access to Oxford University Press titles. Time span: 1996-.
PsycInfo.
An abstract database of psychological literature from the 1800s to the present
Proquest Dissertations and Theses
Providing details of over two million doctoral and master's theses, this is the single,
central and authoritative resource for North American theses. Covers works from 99
percent of US institutions in addition to thousands of international titles. Includes
significant, though patchy, European content. Coverage: 1861 to present. Includes
detailed abstracts for doctoral theses 1980 onwards and for masters 1988 onwards.
Sage Premier
Sage journals online includes over 400 journals in the fields of business, humanities,
social sciences, and science, technology and medicine
Science Direct
Social science, science, technology and medicine - including veterinary medicine.
Full text access for UCD starts from 1995.
Springer link
The premier electronic data source from Springer for researchers in biomedicine, life
science, clinical medicine, physics, engineering, mathematics, computer science,
humanities, and economics. Now also contains all former Kluwer Academic journals.
Time span: 1840 –
Taylor and Francis
Multidisciplinary resource. Coverage includes the humanities, biosciences, business,
environmental sciences, pure and applied science and technology, social science,
urban planning, psychology and law. Time span: 1997Web of Knowledge
Web of Knowledge from ISI provides access to several products including: Web of
Science, ISI Proceedings, Journal Citation Reports, and Essential Science Indicators
Westlaw IE
Irish legal materials database; contains Irish reported and unreported case law,
consolidated/annotated legislation, and legal journals, including “Commercial Law
Practitioner”, “Irish Employment Law Journal”, and “Irish Law Times
Westlaw UK Law of the United States, United Kingdom, European Union and other
jurisdictions. Includes journal articles, case law and legislation. Includes CELEX
database of EU legislation and case law
15
UCD Library / UCD School of Law: Information Resources Policy
Appendix 2
Book Ordering Process
16
UCD Library / UCD School of Law : Information Resources Policy