If you're like me, the search for books and articles on the Wynkoop family has probably been very frustrating and largely unrewarded. None of this material, with the exception of Dee Brown's Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, has ever been on the best-seller list and as a consequence has had very limited circulation. The Library of Congress may have a copy of a lot of it, but not everyone lives in Washington, D. C.

    Fortunately there is a solution for some of this frustration. Much of this material can be borrowed through Inter-Library Loan (ILL). This service allows the Library to borrow materials via the On-line Computer Library Center (OCLC), which connects your library to literally every library around the world.

How to borrow books or request copies of articles:

    Visit your local Library and fill out the request forms. These are usually located at the Reference or Circulation desk. This service is free at my local library but others may charge a small fee for this service. The ILL department will search every available library's source file on OCLC until they find the book you're looking for; or for another minimal fee, plus approximately 10-25 cents per page, they will search and hold for your convenience photocopies of any article you request.

    Some libraries now allow members to request material on an Inter-Library Loan request form electronically, through their Library's Web Page, or will accept faxed requests or mailed requests. It's always best to check with your library to see if this is the case with them.

    Most requests are filled within a few weeks and loan periods are determined by the lending library; usually for three weeks. Turnaround time depends on a number of factors, some of which include:

    Not all libraries loan their materials free of charge. Sometimes loans of materials have to be arranged from private libraries which will charge a fee for the use of their materials. When this is the case you should be notified by the library before they fill your request.

    The ILL department identifies other libraries which own the item, asks to borrow it, and then notifies the requester when it is available. There may be a limit to the number of requests which may be submitted at any one time for books and articles but this will vary from library to library.

    Your ILL request will be processed faster if you provide the ILL department with at least the following information:

FOR BOOKS:

Author(s)
Full title
Publisher
ISBN or Library of Congress Number, (if the book has one.)
Year (especially if you want a specific edition)

FOR ARTICLES:

Journal title
Article title
Author(s)
Volume number
Year
Page numbers

    For determining the information you need for books I suggest you use a resource called the CBI or Cumulative Book Index, usually found at most large libraries. This a year by year listing of books published in English, starting with 1926 and continuing through the present.

Returning Borrowed Materials:

    ILL items must be returned on time. Due dates are determined by the lending library. There are usually NO RENEWALS for any item. Items should be returned to the library where you picked them up from. (Once again, consult your local library for their specific policies regarding this.)

Overdue Materials:

    Hefty per-day fines are charged on each overdue ILL item. Check with your library to find out what they are. Libraries participate in ILL in a cooperative effort to provide needed materials to researchers. Failure to return borrowed materials on time to your library can jeopardize their borrowing privileges with other lending libraries. In addition, you may find yourself without the ability to borrow more material in the future; which would be a tragedy for all concerned.

    Good Hunting!

    Chris