I just made a request to the library about two obits last night and got a reply today. I wanted to know if they had the Cincinnati Voltsblatt on film and if it was available for inter library loan or if they could send me a copy of the obits I was looking for. Maybe it will help to answer some questions for someone. This is the reply I got: Our newspaper microfilm does not leave the building. There is one copy of each film, and each gets heavy use by patrons and staff. If you want to use them, you are welcome to come to the Magazines and Newspapers Dept. on the second floor of the Ninth St. building of the Main Library. We can mail you copies of obits. Barbara Deible is listed in the Volksblatt index, so we can make you a copy of her obit and send it to you. Julian Deible is not listed in the indexes of any of our German language local newspapers. We also searched the indexes of the English language local newspapers of the day, and he does not appear in them, either. The only local newspaper of the time that does not have a print index is the Cincinnati Enquirer. If you would like, we can add his name to our huge queue of searches to perform. See below. We have received your request for photocopies and will process it as expeditiously as possible. ALL REQUESTS ARE NORMALLY PUT INTO A QUEUE IN THE ORDER RECEIVED. We generally receive 300 - 500 requests per month, which are handled by regular departmental staff when they are not scheduled on the reference desk, along with their other off-desk duties. There is no one assigned exclusively to this task. We have been particularly short-staffed since our department was cut three positions in 2003 due to severe state funding reductions. The state government is currently proposing even more massive cuts that, if approved, will result in the loss of millions of dollars to our system annually and additional significant staff reduction. This will further reduce our ability to provide services; if you are an Ohio resident or an out-of-state user of our e-mail reference services, you may wish to contact Ohio state legislators to voice your support of the continuation of library funding at current levels. (Our local system is 95% state-funded.) Fulfilling requests can often take six to ten weeks or more, depending upon the size of the queue, staff availability, and other departmental projects. If an item is needed by a certain date for an important reason, you need to make us aware of this, so we can let you know if we have the staff time available to process your order by that deadline. In order for us to place your order ahead of others in the queue, your request must be time-sensitive, and you must have an important reason other than personal preference (business, legal, etc.). We do not give full or partial obituary information over the telephone except in the case of an upcoming funeral. WE ALSO DO NOT CITE INFORMATION FROM INDIVIDUAL DEATH NOTICES VIA E-MAIL OR POSTAL MAIL. TO ACCESS THE CONTENT OR TO VERIFY THE INCLUSION OF A DEATH NOTICE IN A LOCAL NEWSPAPER, YOU MUST REQUEST A COPY. Beginning in 2002, charges are .25 per page for all copies, regardless of destination. PLEASE DO NOT SEND PAYMENT IN ADVANCE. We do not accept credit cards, and the cost cannot be charged to your library card. (An invoice is included with the completed request and payment can be made via cash, check, or money order.) Please be aware that requests that do not include complete references to specific publications may require considerable time to research. Also, when an exact citation is not supplied, it is possible that we will not be able to locate the material requested. A few generations ago, it was not uncommon for families to forgo today's more common practice of placing a decedent's obituary in the newspaper. Hence, many persons who died in the 1800's or earlier and even quite a few who died in the earlier part of the 1900's may not have ever had any sort of obituary or funeral notice published in the newspaper. Even nowadays, a published funeral/death notice is at the discretion of the family, although most families choose to include this sort of public announcement, for which there is usually a charge. Lengthy requests, or those which include long lists of citations, will be completed in stages, as staff availability permits. Also, please note that we are unable to complete requests for death notices that do not include an exact date of death (month, day and year), as we search local newspapers only for five days from the date of death. Thank you. Marianne Reynolds Reference Librarian, Magazines & Newspapers Dept. Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County 513-369-6973 marianne.reynolds@cincinnatilibrary.org<mailto:marianne.reynolds@cincinnatilibrary.org> -----Original Message----- From: Circulation - Information Services Public Desk Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 8:14 AM To: Magazines and Newspapers Public Desk Subject: FW: eReference from Lora Chaffin -----Original Message----- From: llchaffin@msn.com<mailto:llchaffin@msn.com> [mailto:llchaffin@msn.com] Sent: Tuesday, April 12, 2005 8:28 PM To: Circulation - Information Services Public Desk Subject: eReference from Lora Chaffin Do you have copies of the Cincinnati Volksblatt, Cincinnati German, Paper? If so are they avilable for inter library loan? Or can I have the library make copies of what I need and mail them to my house?