General Government Sources

Databases

The following annotations describe government-related databases. Please note that the GPO Monthly Catalog and WorldCat are only available to Ferris students, staff, and faculty. Those affiliated with Ferris, click here for instructions for off-campus use.

FLITE Online Catalog
Use the Online Catalog to find the government publications that the Ferris Library owns. Each is searchable by keyword, title, author, subject, call number, etc. Found on the second floor in FLITE, Government Documents have the location, "FSU US Govt Documents," in the Online Catalog.

GPO Monthly Catalog
The GPO (Government Printing Office) Monthly Catalog indexes all types of United States government documents, including judiciary materials; Congressional reports, hearings, debates, and records; and documents issued by executive departments (Defense, State, Labor, Office of the President, etc.). Dates covered are 1976 to present.

WorldCat
This database contains library catalog records of all publications worldwide. Each catalog record will tell you where this document is located in the state of Michigan, the U.S., and worldwide. U.S. Government Publications are searchable in this database similarly to the Monthly Catalog database. This database will tell you if Ferris owns the document.

Directories / Search Engines

Federal Resources Organized by Topic
This site will provide you with many different topics for which government information is available. In some cases, the information is in essay form with hot links to government sites that provide further information. There are many different choices you can make to choose just right topic and the right source.

Google.com/unclesam
This search engine searches both U.S. and state government websites by whatever you wish to search. It is recommended that you search phrases using quotes surrounding the phrase. Some of the sites found on Google.com/unclesam will direct you to education sites, but that is because the education institution has contracted with the federal government to provide government information.

Louisiana State University Libraries Federal Agencies Directory
A comprehensive listing of government agencies searchable either alphabetically, or hierarchically. Every government agency, office, branch and section are listed with a link to their homepage.

Federal Government Sources

Ben's Guide to U.S. Government for Kids
This site is designed for the younger crowd, plus teachers and parents. The resources available include information about our government, how our laws are made, citizenship and the election process. Additional resources for teachers include items for sale on many different subjects.

The Federal Citizen Information Center
Hundreds of consumer titles are available for free or for little cost at this site. The catalog changes frequently, so you might want to bookmark this site and visit it frequently.

Federal Digital System (FDsys)
A product of the Government Printing Office (GPO), FDsys provides free online access to official Federal Government publications.

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
This is the official site for finding out about the patenting system of the U.S. Trademark searches and patent searches can be conducted at this site. Searching can be done from any computer worldwide, 24/7, and is absolutely free.

International Government Sources

United Nations General Information
This site provides easy access to a multitude of information about the United Nations and its member agencies.

Michigan Government Sources

Michigan Department of History, Arts & Libraries
Find the Michigan Historical Center Kids' Stuff in Student Activities and Resources. Look for state symbols and other info in Michigan Facts and History. Take a virtual tour of a museum or archives exhibit. Visit historic sites. See photos of Michigan.

Michigan eLibrary
Brought to you by the Library of Michigan, the Michigan eLibrary is an information gateway to selected Internet resources, full-text magazines, newspapers, electronic books online practice tests and more.

Michigan.gov
The homepage for the State of Michigan web resources. Lots of links to various state agencies, and also has up-to-the-minute news from government offices.

Contact: Paul Kammerdiner / Email / Phone: 231-591-3037 / Office: FLITE 331