First posted in 2002.

The Library of Congress, Free Web Access to the LC Authority Files
At the beginning of July the Library of Congress began providing FREE “trial” public access to the LC Authority File via the LC Authorities site. For the cataloging community access to these files can serve many purposes. Four files (Subject, Name, Title, and Name/Title Authority Headings) are available for searching/browsing.
A Few Details
According to the faq, “authority records cannot be searched by keyword(s). are “left-anchored” — search words must be entered in order starting with the leftmost word (omitting initial articles and initial punctuation).” Records are available in a labelled display and MARC format. The only caveat, according to the faq, is that authority records may only be saved, printed or emailed one at a time.
Reference Use?
Although in NO way are these files primary ready-reference tools but they can assist in answering some “fast factual” questions. Here’s one example using the Names file. This file contains about 5.3 million entries including data on 3.8 million personal, 900,000 corporate, 120,000 meeting, and 90,000 geographic names. After running a few searches I found that you can learn “real names” and for birthdays for authors, entertainers, and other celebrity types I was also able to access some basic corporate name info. For example, info on company name changes. Most entries include a citation to the source of the information.
Sample Name File Searches To Try
Select Name Authority Headings and Enter Name
*Comedian Albert Brook’s name file. You’ll learn that his birth name is Albert Einstein
*Rock Music legend Pete Townshend’s Name File. Learn his full name, birth date, and birth location.
*Name file for Metra (the commuter railroad service in Chicago). Learn that Metra is a service name for the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation.
*The often used example, because of the many spelling variations, of Muammar Qaddafi’s authority record.
Final Notes
For those of you out there who are not familiar with authority work, here are several definitions from ODLIS to assist. You probably already realize that these concepts have applications outside the traditional library database as more and more organizations build databases where control and uniformity of material in the database is necessary. The LC Authority file is one of many authority files that exist. OCLC, other libraries, and database providers all build and maintain their own files. Btw, the LC Authorities file is Invisible Web data. These records cannot be accessed from general web engines like Google and AltaVista.
CORRECTION
Anna Della Porta from LC informs me that the above statement about other authority files is incorrect as it relates to OCLC and other services. Anna writes, “In fact, the copy of the LC Authority File (or national authority file) that users view in OCLC or in RLIN is the same “file” that resides at LC. We maintain the master copy of the LC Authority File at LC. Each day we receive authority record contributions from NACO participants via OCLC, RLIN, and the British Library. Those three sites are known as the NACO “nodes” as they maintain copies of the LC Authority File. We then distribute these contributions on a daily basis back to the nodes, along with the records produced by LC catalogers. In this way, the three sites keep their copies of the LC Authority File synchronized with the master copy at LC.
Direct to LC Authorities
See Also: The LC Authorities FAQ

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 4th, 2009 and is filed under Cataloging and Metadata, Databases, Directories, and Guides, Info Management and Retrieval. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.