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DEWEY DECIMAL CLASSIFICATION

CENTENNIAL 1876-1976

Facsimile reprinted
by
Forest Press Division
Lake Placid Educational Foundation

Printed and BoundKingsport Press, Inc.KINGSPORT, TENNESSEE

A

CLASSIFICATION

AND

SUBJECT INDEX

FOR

CATALOGUING AND ARRANGING

THE

BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS

OF A

LIBRARY.

AMHERST, MASS.
1876.

COPYRIGHTED
1876
MELVIL DEWEY

CONTENTS

PREFACE

CLASSES

DIVISIONS

SUBJECT INDEX

EXPLANATIONS

SUBJECT CATALOGUE

PREFACE

The plan of the following Classification and Index was developed early in1873. It was the result of several months' study of library economy as found insome hundreds of books and pamphlets, and in over fifty personal visits to variousAmerican libraries. In this study, the author became convinced that the usefulnessof these libraries might be greatly increased without additional expenditure.Three years practical use of the system here explained, leads him to believethat it will accomplish this result; for with its aid, the catalogues, shelf lists,indexes, and cross-references essential to this increased usefulness, can be mademore economically than by any other method which he has been able to find.The system was devised for cataloguing and indexing purposes, but it wasfound on trial to be equally valuable for numbering and arranging books andpamphlets on the shelves.

The library is first divided into nine special libraries which are called Classes.These Classes are Philosophy, Theology, &c., and are numbered with the ninedigits. Thus Class 9 is the Library of History; Class 7, the Library of FineArt; Class 2, the Library of Theology. These special libraries or Classes arethen considered independently, and each one is separated again into nine specialDivisions of the main subject. These Divisions are numbered from 1 to 9 aswere the Classes. Thus 59 is the 9th Division (Zoology) of the 5th Class (NaturalScience). A final division is then made by separating each of these Divisionsinto nine Sections which are numbered in the same way, with the nine digits.Thus 513 is the 3d Section (Geometry) of the 1st Division (Mathematics) of the5th Class (Natural Science). This number, giving Class, Division, and Section, iscalled the Classification or Class Number, and is applied to every book or pamphletbelonging to the library. All the Geometries are thus numbered 513, all theMineralogies 549, and so throughout the library, all the books on any given subjectbear the number of that subject in the scheme. Where a 0 occurs in a classnumber, it has its normal zero power. Thus, a book numbered 510, is Class 5,Division 1, but no Section. This signifies that the book treats of the Division 51(Mathematics) in general, and is not limited to any one Section, as is the Geometry,marked 513. If marked 500, it would indicate a treatise on Science in general,limited to no Division. A zero occurring in the first place would in the sameway show that the book is limited to no Class. The classification is mainly madeby subjects or content regardless of form; but it is found practically useful tomake an additional distinction in these general treatises, according to the formof treatment adopted. Thus, in Science we have a large number of bookstreating of Science in general, and so having a 0 for the Division number.These books are then divided into Sections, as are those of the other Classesaccording to the form they have taken on. We have the Philosophy and Historyof Science, Scientific Compends, Dictionaries, Essays, Periodicals, Societies,