Call Numbers

General Note on Call Numbers

Archival Materials have four possible call number systems:

• Accession Numbers - temporary call numbers used before a collection has a finding aid

• Photo Numbers - sequential numbers used for the photograph files  

• MS Numbers - call numbers used for personal papers, family papers, and the records of organizations other than Pacific University 

• RG Numbers - call numbers used for organizational records of Pacific University, such as the Board of Trustees minutes

File names for digital objects, like JPEGs or PDFs, are assigned according to separate directions. 

Art & Museum Collections at this time ONLY use one call number system:

• Accession Numbers 

Rare Books have two possible call number systems: 

• RARE numbers - these are "accession number order" call numbers, used for 99% of books we add to the collection currently

• LC numbers - these are the Library of Congress numbers used for Pacific's main collections and for books in the glass cabinets in Tran. 

Accession Numbers (Archives, Art, & Museum Collections)

When a new group of material arrives, we assign it an Accession Number. This is a unique number that helps us track where our collections came from. Accession numbers use this format:

ACC.YYYY.X - for accessions to the Archives
ART.YYYY.X - for accessions to the Permanet Art Collection
MUS.YYYY.X - for accessions to the Museum

ACC / ART / MUS = A prefix for the collection. This helps to prevent us from confusing our Accession Numbers with other types of call numbers.
YYYY = stands for the year when we made the accession record, for example, 2012.
X = stands for a sequential number. The first accession of the year is "1"; the next one is "2"; and so on. NOTE: This number works like a normal integer for filing purposes.

Examples of accession numbers:

ACC.2012.14        The number for an accession titled "Sidney Harper Marsh Photographs." This was the 14th accession of the year 2012.
ACC.2011.423      The number for an accession titled "Pacific University Library Management Team Records." This was the 423rd accession of the year 2011.  

Photo Numbers (Archives)

When we receive loose photographs that are not associated with any particular collection of papers, they are filed into the Historic Photographs collection. Each photograph in the files has a unique sequential number, which is penciled on the back. The numbering starts at 8000; this happened a long time ago, and we are not sure why it starts there!

Examples of photo numbers:

8004
10342

To see how these numbers translate into the Identifiers we use for Digital Objects, see File names for digital objects.

MS Numbers (Archives)

We assign MS numbers to collections of personal papers, family papers, and the records of organizations other than Pacific University. They use this format:

MS.X
MS.File.X   *for very small collections only; see note below

MS = stands for "Manuscript."  This helps to prevent us from confusing our MS Numbers with other types of call numbers.
X =  stands for a sequential number. The first manuscript collection that we processed was "1," the next one was "2", and so on.  NOTE: This number works like a normal integer for filing purposes.
*File: This prefix indicates that the collection is very small, consisting of 1 folder only. MS.File.X numbers counts upward in the same sequence as the main MS.X sequence. So for example: MS.120, MS.File.121, MS.122, etc. We use this prefix in order to save space on the shelves. MS.File.X collections are placed together in a run of boxes that are shelved directly after the MS.X collections. 

Examples of MS numbers: 

MS.16    The number for the "James Robertson Papers." This was the 16th manuscript collection that we processed.
MS.52    The number for the "Olaus J. Murie Collection." This was the 52nd manuscript collection that we processed.
MS.File.122  The number for the "Carl Peterson Student Music Notebook." This was the 122nd manuscript collection that we processed; it is a small collection shelved in the MS.File series.

RG Numbers (Archives)

We assign RG numbers to collections of organizational records created by Pacific University offices and programs. We use a special call number system for these records in order to make it easier to keep long-running series of documents together, such as all of the records from the Board of Trustees or the President's Office. RG numbers use this format:

RG.N.X

RG = stands for "Record Group." This helps to prevent us from confusing our RG Numbers with other types of call numbers.
N = the number of the general group to which the collection belongs. For example, 3 is the number for Presidents' records. See the table below for more detail.
X = the number for the sub-group to which the collection belongs. NOTE: This number works like a DECIMAL. For example, .134 would come before .22

Examples of RG numbers:

RG.3.104         The number for the "Pacific University President Thomas McClelland Records." This is within Record Group 3, President's Records; Sub-group 104 is devoted to McClelland.

RG.5.10           The number for the "Tom McCall Forum Collection." This is within Record Group 5, Academic Affairs; Sub-group 10 has been arbitrarily assigned to the McCall Forum.

RARE Book Numbers (Books)

Rare books that we have added to our collections since 2012 are assigned "RARE" (or ROVSZ) call numbers. Books with these call numbers are shelved in the order in which they were cataloged, rather than being classified according to subject matter. This is a common practice in rare book libraries. Shelving them in the order we catalog them simplifies our stacks managements considerably, since we don't have to constantly shift books to make room for new ones. Newly acquired books instead just get added to the end of the shelving range. Because our rare book stacks are closed, patrons can't browse the stacks; so there is little advantage to keeping the books shelved according to subject. 

Rare Numbers follow this pattern, where YYYY is the year in which the book was cataloged, not the year it was published; and X is the next available sequential number. 

RARE.YYYY.X  - for rare books of normal size; these are currently shelved in the side room of the Archives

ROVSZ.YYYY.X   - for oversized rare books; these are currently shelved in the compact shelving room of the Archives

These numbers are assigned by the cataloger during the cataloging process. See Rare Book Call Number / Barcode Labels for details on how to physically attach them to the books. 

LC Classification Numbers (Books)

Pacific's main book collection is classified and shelved using Library of Congress (LC) numbers, which typically look similar to this: Z253 U60 2007. 

Most of our rare book collection DOES NOT use this system, for the reasons outlined above under "RARE Book Numbers." However, the books in Tran Library's locked glass cabinets have been grandfathered in, using the LC Call Number system. They were cataloged that way years ago, so we have let those call numbers stand. Only books that are going to be shelved in those cabinets should receive LC Call Numbers.