Library Research Service
Service Provided
Provide information about holdings to visitors and users of the library. This information includes access to information resources on the Nevada State Library, Archives & Public Records (NSLAPR) website, licensed online databases, and the online catalog.
Provide information from the library’s collection and interlibrary loan service. In addition to answering questions from the collection this can include brief, factual reference questions pertaining to the following Nevada-related subjects:
Provide referrals to other agencies and organizations that may have the information being sought.
Service Priorities
Nevada government agencies (state, county, city), Nevada Legislature and the Legislative Counsel Bureau
Nevada libraries
Nevada residents
General public with research questions about Nevada
Due to limited staff, staff reserves the right to give priority to questions from Nevada government and residents.
All service to in-person patrons takes precedence over telephone, U.S. mail, or e-mail inquiries. Telephone inquiries will be used for providing short, factual information.
All questions submitted over the telephone, U.S Mail, or email are prioritized and answered in the order received at NSLAPR.
Reference / Research Requests
Questions are evaluated based on the ability to find the answer, the patron, and other duties. All reference/research topics are clarified before any work is started by NSLAPR staff.
State Employees – Research requiring more than one hour is performed solely for state employees completing work related research. Research taking longer than one hour will be reviewed by Head of Access Services and may require a reference interview to define the scope of the research and the resources available.
All Other Patrons – Complex research questions from all other patrons taking longer than one hour will be reviewed and may require a reference interview that defines the scope of the research and the resources available. Staff is unable to conduct lengthy, in-depth research for patrons. If the scope is beyond the resources available at NSLAPR, the patron may be referred to a professional researcher.
Ask a Librarian – Ask a Librarian email reference is limited to one hour. In order for email reference to be completed, all contact information must be provided in the email request including an email address as well as a current valid street address and phone number. This information will be verified before services will start. An email reference question taking longer than one hour may require a reference interview that defines the scope of the research and may be referred to a professional researcher.
Telephone Inquiries – Telephone inquiries are limited to thirty minutes. A telephone inquiry taking longer than thirty minutes may require a reference interview that defines the scope of the research and may be referred to a professional researcher.
NSLAPR accepts up to three questions per request. NSLAPR will not accept more than three requests from the same individual in the same thirty day period.
If the question is not for a priority user as defined in the service priorities section, library reference services may take up to 30 days to respond.
Family History Research
Individuals requiring in-depth family history research are directed to the NSLAPR Family History Resources webpage or professional genealogy researchers. The Board for Certification of Genealogists maintains a database of genealogists who are certified.
Historical Research
Individuals requiring in-depth historical research may be directed to the Nevada Historical Society’s List of Researchers.
Photocopies
Copies of items in the collection that cannot be circulated are $0.10 per page. There is no charge for 30 pages or fewer. The Library does not offer printing or photocopying of items that are not in the collection.
Copies made for mail, e-mail, or fax requests will be billed via an invoice at 10 cents per page. Payment must be received prior to mailing, emailing, or faxing the copies. Checks are made payable to “Nevada State Library”.
