The University Libraries serve as a resource center for the educational programs by providing the materials necessary to support the curriculum and to provide for the general reading of students and faculty.
The Rupert and Pauline Richardson Library is the main library holding reference materials, circulating collections, periodicals, government documents, the education library, and staff offices. Special collections include the Kelley and Tandy Bible Collections and HSU memorabilia in the 1891 Legacy Room, the Caldwell-Hertzog Collection of Fine Printing, the Betty Woods Rare Book Collection, including first editions of William Faulkner and Thomas Wolfe. The Abilene Photograph Collection, the Research Center of the Southwest, the Crane Texana Collection, J. W. Williams Map Collection, a large part of the personal library of the late historian Walter Prescott Webb, and the Bradley-Ford Memorial Room.
The Smith Music Library, housed in the Caldwell Music Building, contains study scores, collected works of various composers, recordings, and certain basic music books and reference materials. Special collections include the Sims Hymnal Collection and the Thurman Lee and Lucialis Jones Morrison Collection of American Hymnody. Listening equipment is provided, and the library houses the taped concerts and recitals of the School of Music.
The libraries hold current subscriptions to over 48,000 periodicals and house approximately 375,000 items. A reciprocal agreement among Abilene libraries makes it possible for patrons at any university to use the resources of the others, making over 1,800,000 volumes available to the Hardin-Simmons community.
Faculty may check out materials from the libraries at Abilene Christian University, McMurry University and Howard Payne University or the Abilene Public Library. The libraries operate a courier delivery service Monday through Friday among the five libraries. Materials may be requested online and delivered and/or returned by courier. These services are provided at the Circulation Desk. Checkout periods are 21-30 days on most items from the other libraries.
As a charter member of Abilene Library Consortium (ALC), HSU has implemented an integrated library automation system: SIRSI. Computers in the libraries access the holdings of HSU, Abilene Christian University, McMurry University, Howard Payne University and Abilene Public Library, and the internet. The ALC web address is: http://www.alc.org . Then click on "Our Members". The ALC database holds 2,000,000 volumes accessible by author, title, subject and keyword searches.
Graduate Assistants and departmental secretaries may check out library materials for faculty members following these instructions:
The faculty member must own an HSU ID.
The faculty member must send a signed and dated memo indicating permission for the named assistant to check out on your behalf. The memo should be sent to the User Services Librarian.
The library will note on the faculty member’s record the name of the assistant who has permission to checkout on the faculty member’s record. This permission will need to be updated each semester.
The assistant will need the faculty member’s ID for each checkout.
The faculty member is responsible for the return of the library materials, even if the faculty member has lent the materials to another person.
Please do not send assistants to the library to checkout non-circulating materials.
Materials to be placed on reserve, such as copies, books, videos, etc. must be brought to the Circulation area and a card completed to indicate the course, reserve type, date to be removed from reserve, and faculty member’s name, address, phone number and box number. Please allow two working days for the Circulation staff to process items for reserve before assigning students to use the reserve materials. A complete citation must be provided for articles or portions of articles or books.
Assistants may copy, fax, or laminate only if they have a completed, signed interdepartmental form with the appropriate budget number or cash to pay the cost of these services.
The library staff would be pleased to provide research instructions or library orientations for assistants. Please ask your liaison librarian for an appointment.
Richardson Library has been a selective depository for federal government publications since 1940. Several thousand publications are added to the collection annually. Subject matter ranges from congressional investigations and current statistics to recipes and consumer information and almost any subject in between. For many areas of study such as current events, economics, history, government,science, and social work , documents are essential research materials.
Many sources of information regarding both state and federal governments are available electronically. See the library catalog for documents available via computer. Since few students are familiar with government documents research, the Periodicals and Documents Librarian encourages faculty to arrange tours of the documents collection when research topics are assigned, especially in upper-level courses.
