Archival Research Catalog (ARC)
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Instructions for Creating ARC Search Links

Create your own ARC Search Links with embedded keywords for Archival Research Catalog (ARC) results. Include ARC Search Links in a slide presentation or on webpages. Encode an ARC Search Link in order to bookmark an ARC description in your browser. Tips for ARC Search Links explain how to use the links and refine your search results.

Standard Formats

There are three types of ARC Search Links (ARC Identifier, Keyword, and Digital Copies).  Each follows a standard format.

Standard Format (ARC Identifier Search Link)

  • One ARC Identifier (ID) number is embedded in the URL of an ARC Search Link. The URLs all follow the same format. The queries are limited to a single ARC ID number.
  • The search link goes to the full details view for the individual ARC description.

URL format:
http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalIdSearch?id=[ARC ID number]


Note: Variables are in brackets [ ] in bold.

 

Standard Format (Keyword Search Link)

  • The ARC search query or expression is embedded in the URL of an ARC Search Link. The URLs all follow the same format.
  • The default hit limit is 100 hits, but you can limit the search to 1,000 or 2,000 hits.
  • The search link goes to the ARC Search Results view.
  • The queries are limited to keyword searches. A search expression could be a single keyword, a number, such as an ARC ID number, or multiple keywords or numbers. A Search Expression with multiple keywords or numbers must include character escape codes.
  • The default is all NARA locations, but you can filter the search to one or more NARA locations using their location codes.

URL format:
http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalSearch?searchExpression=
[Search Expression]

URL format with hit limit:
http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalSearch?searchExpression=
[Search Expression]&hitLimit=[100 or 1000 or 2000]

URL format with location filter:
http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalSearch?searchExpression=
[Search Expression]&location=[Location Code]

Note: Variables are in brackets [ ] in bold.

 

Standard Format (Digital Copies Search Link)

  • The ARC Digital Copies search query or expression is embedded in the URL of an ARC Search Link. The URLs all follow the same format.
  • The default hit limit is 100 hits, but you can limit the search to 1,000 or 2,000 hits.
  • The default is all NARA locations, but you can filter the search to one or more NARA locations using their location codes.
  • The search link goes to the Digital Copies Results view.
  • The queries are limited to keyword searches. A search expression could be a single keyword, a number, such as an ARC ID number, or multiple keywords or numbers. A Search Expression with multiple keywords or numbers must include character escape codes.

URL format:
http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalDOSearch?searchExpression=
[Search Expression]

URL format with hit limit:
http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalDOSearch?searchExpression=
[Search Expression]&hitLimit=[100 or 1000 or 2000]

URL format with location filter:
http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalDOSearch?searchExpression=
[Search Expression]&hitLimit=[100 or 1000 or 2000]&location=[Location Code]

Character Escape Codes for ARC Search Links

ARC Search Links allow for Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT), nesting with parentheses, wildcard searching (with an asterisk *) and exact phrase searching (with quotes “ ”). To use these advanced keyword search functions, “escape” the search expression before inserting it in the ARC Search Link URL.  A character that needs to be “escaped” (such as a space or a question mark) must be replaced with its character escape code in the URL.  Parentheses, periods, apostrophes, and asterisks are safe and do not need to be escaped.  Dashes do not need to be escaped, but they must appear between escaped quotes to be searchable in ARC.

Definition Character Character Escape Code

Space

 

%20

Comma

,

%2C

Question mark

?

%3F

Quotation mark

"

%22

Ampersand

&

%26

Sample ARC Search Link URLs

The examples below include basic and more advanced keywords for ARC. To see a sample of the ARC Search Results, click on the ARC Search Link URL. Advanced Search Tips for ARC provide additional information about formulating keyword searches.

Keywords Escaped
Search
Expression 		ARC Search Link URL
650323 650323 http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalIdSearch?id=650323
583674 OR 587427 583674%20
OR%20587427		 http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=583674
%20OR%20587427
China China http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=China
&hitLimit=100

battle ships

 battle%20ships http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=battle
%20ships&hitLimit=1000

Sandra Day O’Connor

 Sandra%20Day
%20O’Connor

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=Sandra
%20Day%20O’Connor&hitLimit=2000
Nixon AND China Nixon%20AND
%20China		 http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=Nixon
%20AND%20China&hitLimit=2000

(boat OR ship) AND Philadelphia

(boat%20OR
%20ship)
%20AND%20
Philadelphia

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=(boat
%20OR%20ship)%20AND%20Philadelphia
&hitLimit=2000

teach*

 teach*

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=teach*
&hitLimit=2000

"Harry S. Truman"

 %22Harry
%20S.%20
Truman%22

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=%22
Harry%20S.%20Truman%22&hitLimit=2000

"Boutros Boutros-Ghali"

 %22Boutros
%20Boutros-
Ghali%22

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=%22
Boutros%20Boutros-Ghali%22&hitLimit=2000
security

[Located at Carter and Reagan Libraries Only]

 security

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalSearch?searchExpression=security&location=9&location=13&
hitLimit=2000

treaty

[Digital Copies only]		 treaty

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalDOSearch?searchExpression=
treaty&hitLimit=2000

space

[Digital Copies at Fort Worth only		 space

http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/
ExternalDOSearch?searchExpression=space
&location=21&hitLimit=2000

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Location Codes in ARC

Location Code
Clinton Library - Little Rock, AR 1
Eisenhower Library - Abilene, KS 2
Roosevelt Library - Hyde Park, NY 3
Bush Library - College Station, TX 4
Ford Library - Ann Arbor, MI 5
Ford Museum - Grand Rapids, MI 6
Hoover Library - West Branch, IA 7
Truman Library - Independence, MO 8
Carter Library - Atlanta, GA 9
Kennedy Library - Boston, MA 10
Johnson Library - Austin, TX 11
Nixon Materials - College Park, MD 12
Reagan Library - Simi Valley, CA 13
Presidential Materials - Washington, DC 48
Nixon Library - Yorba Linda, CA 51
Northeast Region - Boston, MA 14
Northeast Region - New York, NY 15
Northeast Region - Pittsfield, MA 16
Mid Atlantic Region - Philadelphia, PA 17
Southeast Region - Atlanta, GA 18
Great Lakes Region - Chicago, IL 19
Central Plains Region - Kansas City, MO 20
Southwest Region - Fort Worth, TX 21
Rocky Mountains Region - Denver, CO 22
Pacific Region - Laguna Niguel, CA 23
Pacific Region - San Bruno, CA 24
Pacific Alaska Region - Anchorage, AK 25
Pacific Alaska Region - Seattle, WA 26
National Personnel Records Center (Archives) - St. Louis, MO 50
National Personnel Records Center (Civilian) - St. Louis, MO 27
National Personnel Records Center(Military) - St. Louis, MO 28
Cartographic - College Park, MD 29
Motion Pictures - College Park, MD 30
Still Pictures - College Park, MD 31
Archives I (Reference) - Washington, DC 32
Archives II (Reference - Civilian) - College Park, MD 33
Archives II (Reference - Military) - College Park, MD 35
Special Access - College Park, MD 34
Center for Legislative Records - Washington, DC 36
Electronic Records - College Park, MD 37

Getting the ARC Search Link to Open in a New Window

Encode a command for opening a new window and instructions for the window's characteristics in the A HREF tag. There are different ways to do this. As an example of the HTML code we use, here is the code for a search on Virginia:

<a href="http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalSearch?searchExpression=Virginia" onclick="popup = window.open('http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalSearch?searchExpression=Virginia', 'PopupPage', 'height=400,width=600,scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes,
toolbar=yes,menubar=yes'); return false" target="_blank">Virginia</a>

Note: To have the Address Bar display on the new browser window, add ',location=yes' after ',menubar=yes' in the coding.

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