Locating Russian Transliteration: A Survey of Library of Congress Holdings and Acquisitions Policies

The Library of Congress (LC) has a rich history of collecting and preserving Russian publications, dating back to the early 19th century. Despite this, very little has been written about the LC's pre-1907 holdings and acquisitions policies for Russian materials. This article aims to fill this gap by surveying the LC's pre-1907 holdings and acquisitions policies for Russian publications.

The LC's earliest Russian-language books were acquired through the purchase of Thomas Jefferson's library in 1815. However, it was not until the Smithsonian Deposit of 1866 that the Russian collection truly began to grow. The development of international exchanges with Russian institutions in the latter part of the 19th century also played a significant role in expanding the LC's Russian holdings.

The LC's acquisitions policies for Russian materials were initially focused on purchasing books about Russia in English translation and on limited subjects. It was not until the early 20th century that the LC began to actively seek out Russian-language publications. The acquisition of the Yudin Collection in November 1906 marked a significant turning point in the development of the LC's Russian collections.

This article draws heavily from archival documents and printed catalogs, including those from the LC and Smithsonian Institution archives. By examining these sources, it is possible to gain a deeper understanding of the LC's early efforts to collect and preserve Russian materials.

In conclusion, this article provides a survey of the Library of Congress's pre-1907 holdings and acquisitions policies for Russian publications. It highlights the important role that international exchanges and archival collections have played in shaping the LC's Russian collections, and demonstrates the importance of preserving historical documents and printed catalogs as a means of understanding the development of library collections over time.

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