Other Resources
Researching Public Laws Enacted in 1941-1944
Identify the Public Law number and the bill number
To determine the number of the Public Law, use one of the following:
- Shepard's Acts and Cases By Popular Names, Federal & State...
Reference KF 80 .S5
provides the citation, including Public Law number. - The title and synopsis of laws in U.S. Statutes at Large back to 1789 can be searched by keyword or citation at ProQuest Congressional.
- U.S.C.S. - United States Code Service
Reference KF 62 1972 .L38
provides the full text of laws currently in effect, arranged by subject. The Public Law numbers for a specific section appear in a history note following the text of the law.
Two other listings of federal laws by name are
- U.S. Code - Popular Names of Acts (Cornell Law School)
- Look up a Popular Name for a statute (ProQuest Congressional)
Retrieve the list of reports and documents by bill number(s)
CIS U.S. Serial Set Index, Part XIII, Index by Reported Bill Numbers, 1817-1969
This print index is located in the UCF Library on the first floor at U.S. Documents Reference Z 1223.Z9 C65 1975. Follow the instructions to proceed from the library entrance to the East stairs and down to the first floor. From the stairwell turn left at the first corner and the books will be just around the corner against the wall.
The index identifies the committee reports and documents associated with a specific bill, arranged by Congressional session and bill number.
The UCF Library has the full text of these reports available on microfiche.
Similar index access by bill number is available online in ProQuest Congressional, but you will still need to use the microfiche for access to the full text.
Retrieve the list of reports, documents, and hearings by subject
ProQuest Congressional, Historical Indexes, 1789-1969
This online index can be used to identify Congressional publications prior to 1969.
The UCF Library has the full text of the Serial Set and published committee hearings available on microfiche, with much of the Serial Set also available online.
The unpublished hearings and pre-1969 committee prints are not currently available at UCF.
NOTE: The indexing by keyword and bill number is not comprehensive, so be creative in your search strategy.
CIS U.S. Congressional Committee Hearings Index, 1833-1969
CIS U.S. Congressional Committee Hearings Index, 1833-1969
This print index is located in the UCF Library on the first floor at U.S. Documents Reference KF 25.C659 Index. Follow the instructions to proceed from the library entrance to the East stairs and down to the first floor. As soon as you exit the stairwell turn right and the books will be on the shelves against the wall.
The index identifies the pre-1969 published committee hearings, all of which are available in the UCF Library on microfiche.
Similar index access is available online in ProQuest Congressional, but you will still need to use the microfiche for access to the full text.
Retrieve articles from journals and newspapers
If you haven't already done so, consider reviewing your topic in a specialized encyclopedia, e.g.,
- Encyclopedia of Social Issues - Reference HN 57 .E59
- Beacham's Encyclopedia of Social Change, America in the Twentieth Century - Reference HN 59.2 .B43
- Encyclopedia of Social Work - Reference HV 35 .S6
- West's Encyclopedia of American Law - Reference KF 154 .W47
- Gale Encyclopedia of Everyday Law (online only)
- Major Acts of Congress (online only)
Search for articles discussing the legislation in journals and newspapers. These articles may help in your analysis of the legislative history documents gathered in the previous steps.
Congressional Digest (1921+)
- Congressional Digest (1921+)Call Number: UCF Main Library Microfilm - 3rd Floor -- JK1.C65 (1922-1966)Congressional Digest provides a monthly analysis of the pros and cons of public policy issues.
Online 1921+
Print - v.43(1964)-v.76(1997) - UCF Main Library General Collection 3rd floor -- JK1.C65
Vital Speeches of the Day (1934+)
Vital Speeches of the Day provides the full text of speeches on a wide range of political topics.
- Online version (1934+)
- Microfilm PN 6121 .V52 (1934-1939, 1968-1996, 1997-2001)
- General Collection PN 6121 .V52 (1939-1968)
Facts on File Yearbook (1941+)
Facts on File Yearbook provides "a detailed, objective and timely weekly distillation of the news and current information as reported in more than 70 major newspapers and newsmagazines from the U.S. and around the world."
- Reference D 410 .F3 (1941+)
Wilson Indexes (1890+)
The UCF Libraries subscribe to the online versions of several indexes covering articles published in the early part of the twentieth century:
- Readers' Guide Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson) (1983+) This link opens in a new windowDesigned for professional educators, this database provides a highly specialized collection of nearly 520 high quality education journals, including more than 350 peer-reviewed titles. This database also contains more than 200 educational reports. Professional Development Collection is the most comprehensive collection of full text education journals in the world.
- Social Sciences Index (H.W. Wilson) (1974-2004)[online access cancelled due to budget cuts]
paper index available: UCF ARC Main General Collection -- AI3.R492
"Subject coverage includes addiction studies, anthropology, community health & medical care, communications, economics, environmental studies, ethics, family studies, gender studies, geography, international relations, law, mass media, minority studies, political science, psychiatry, psychology, public welfare, social work, urban studies and much more." - Business Abstracts with Full Text (H.W. Wilson) (1982+) This link opens in a new window"contains the full text of articles from more than 510 key publications dating back to 1995, and provides access to product evaluations, interviews, biographical sketches, corporate profiles, obituaries, surveys, statistical rankings, book reviews and reports from associations, societies, trade shows, conferences and more."
- Education Source (EBSCOhost) This link opens in a new window“This database provides scholarly research and information to meet the needs of education students, professionals, and policy makers. It covers all levels of education — from early childhood to higher education — as well as all educational specialties such as multilingual education, health education, and testing.”
See also Education Index Retrospective (1929-1983)
Other articles
Continue your research by looking for articles in other journals and newspapers.
- Social Work
- News and Newspapers can provide access to newspaper articles written during critical stages of the legislative process or shortly after enactment.
- Florida News
Databases -- Some of the databases and indexes available at UCF can be used to locate professional journals in political science or in the discipline of the legislative topic. Note that you may find articles in more recent journal issues looking back at laws enacted much earlier than the publication date of the journal. Examples of some databases to consider include:
- Social Services Abstracts (ProQuest) (1979+) This link opens in a new windowResearch focused on social work, human services, and related areas, including social welfare, social policy, and community development.
- Worldwide Political Science Abstracts (ProQuest) (1975+) This link opens in a new windowprovides citations, abstracts, and indexing of the international serials literature in political science and its complementary fields, including international relations, law, and public administration / policy.