Library of Congress Online Catalog: Help Pages

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Number Search (LCCN-ISBN-ISSN)

The Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN), International Standard Book Number (ISBN) and International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) can all be used to retrieve unique records from the Online Catalog.

A Number Search (LCCN-ISBN-ISSN) retrieves materials by standard numbers.
Number Search Screen

NOTE:
Search limits
are available.
Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) are not available.

Number Search Examples:

To Search Number Type... Enter Search As...

LCCN 89-456
(numbers assigned before 1/1/2001)

89000456
-- When entering LCCNs, always omit the hyphen.
-- If the portion following the hyphen is less than 6 characters, always add leading zeros to make it 6 characters in length.
-- The total length should be 8 characters.
LCCN 2001-1114
(numbers assigned after 1/1/2001)
2001001114
-- When entering LCCNs, always omit the hyphen.
-- If the portion following the hyphen is less than 6 characters, always add leading zeros to make it 6 characters in length.
-- The total length should be 10 characters.

LCCN gm 71-2450
(include the alpha prefix to the LCCN if known)

gm71002450
-- Include the prefix, if known
-- When entering LCCNs, always omit the hyphen.
-- If the portion following the hyphen is less than 6 characters, always add leading zeros to make it 6 characters in length.
-- The total length should be 8 characters.
ISSN 1094-1304 1094-1304
-- Always include the hyphen and do not enclose the search string in quotation marks.
ISBN 0-553-37783-3
ISBN 978-0-97526-433-0
0553377833
9780975274330
-- Always omit all hyphens and spaces.
-- It is not necessary to enclose the search statement in quotation marks.
-- The total length may be 10 or 13 characters.*
* learn more about 13-digit ISBNs

Search Tips:

  • Searches are automatically truncated and retrieve catalog records that match partial numbers: (8900011 retrieves "89000118", "89000119", etc.). Note that partial numbers take significantly longer to retrieve.
  • Note that the format of the LCCN changed for numbers assigned after January 1, 2001. LCCNs assigned since that date now have a 4 digit year portion (2001) followed by a six digit item number (001114). This number would be searched 2001001114.
    -- Numbers assigned before Jan. 1, 2001, were NOT changed to the new format, and should still be searched in the two digit year, 6 digit item number format (89000456).

Alternative Search Options:

Use Expert Search or Guided Search with the appropriate index codes to search for numbers in combination with other search elements

Use the browser's [Back] button to resume searching.

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June 25, 2008