Children's Literature at The University of Alabama Archival Facility
The University of Alabama Library has an extensive children's and young adult literature collection. The collection is so large that it cannot fit within the space allotted at the Gorgas Library for school library books. Over 35,000 children's book titles reside, instead, at the UA Archival Facility. This facility is located off-campus, and it is not open to visitors. The school library books located within the Archival Facility can still be requested and checked out, though. Typically, once a request for a book has been submitted, it takes approximately 24 hours for the book to be delivered to the Gorgas Library Circulation Desk for pickup. Distance students can request to have items mailed to them.
How to Request a Book from the Archival Facility
Step One
To request a book, you will need to visit the Interlibrary Loan webpage and create your ILLIAD account using your myBama credentials.
Step Two
Start by searching the Library catalog for a specific book title. Access the library catalog by either going to the UA Library Homepage.
Step Three
Look at the "Holdings Information" to see if the book is located at the Archival Facility or if it can be found in Gorgas Library within the School Library Collection. The record below shows that UA Libraries owns 2 copies of the book. Both copies are located at the Archival Facility, and both copies are available for check out. To obtain the book, click on the "Request Item" link at the top left of the book record.
Step Four
The Interlibrary Loan screen will appear. Sign in with your ILLiad account.
Step Five
Click on "New Request" to access the dropdown menu options. To request a print book choose the option, "UA Materials Express"
Step Six
The InterLibrary Loan software will automatically pull the book information over from the library catalog into the request form. All fields marked with a red star will need to be completed in order to request a book. You can choose to have the book delivered to either Gorgas, Rodgers, or Bruno Library. Since we are requesting a book from the Archival Facility, it is important that we select "Yes" in the Archival Facility field, even though it is not starred. Also, since we are requesting a book, select "No" in the Serials box. Once you hit submit, the request process is complete. The book will be delivered to the Circulation Desk at your chosen library, and you will receive an email letting you know when it's available for pick up. When you are ready to return the book, simply return it to the Circulation Desk.
