Showing posts with label Databases. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Databases. Show all posts

Saturday, March 20, 2021

Who Can Use the Telegraph Herald Digital Archive

Telegraph Herald Digital Archive

Thanks to a gift from the Clive W. and Mona M. Lacy Trust and a partnership with the Telegraph Herald, the Library now hosts a digital archive of the Telegraph Herald newspaper. Browse and search over fifty-seven thousand editions of the Telegraph Herald spanning almost two-hundred years. You may not even need a library card!

Who Can Use the Telegraph Herald Digital Archive?

In-Person Visitors

All in-person visitors may use the Telegraph Herald Digital Archive inside Carnegie-Stout Public Library. No library card is needed. Printing is 10 cents per page, and help is available at the 2nd Floor Reference Desk.

Dubuque Residents

Dubuque city residents may use the Telegraph Herald Digital Archive online by clicking on Browse the Archive and then entering the full number on the back of your library card with no spaces, and your PIN, which should be the last four digits of your phone number. If these numbers do not work, or if you do not have a library card, please call us at 563-589-4225 and ask for the Cards Desk.

Iowa Residents

Other Iowa residents may be eligible for a free Open Access library card which should enable you to use the Telegraph Herald Digital Archive online. For details, please call us at 563-589-4225 and ask for the Cards Desk.

Non-Residents

If you live outside of Iowa, you can purchase a non-resident card to use the Telegraph Herald Digital Archive online. For costs and more details, see Get A Card, or call us at 563-589-4225 and ask for the Cards Desk.

Free, No-Card Option

Another option is to try the free Dubuque Newspapers in Google News Archive. While this option does not support keyword searches, it is very handy for browsing by date, and it does not require a library card. For tips and tricks, see How to Find Dubuque Obituaries Online.

Also, the State Historical Society of Iowa provides free access to Iowa and Dubuque newspapers in NewspaperARCHIVE.com. Go to Digital Resources and then click on "NewspaperArchives Iowa Database." At that page, use "Go to Advanced Search" to narrow searches to Dubuque.

Reference Help

If you cannot find what you are looking for, our reference librarians at yourlibrarian@carnegiestout.org may be able to provide further assistance, or call us at 563-589-4225 and ask for the Reference Desk.

Monday, March 31, 2014

Architecture Days Scavenger Hunt: The Librarian Way

I love the Architecture Days Scavenger Hunt. And I am terrible at it.

If you're not familiar, Architecture Days takes place every April. If you've got any interest in architecture or local history, there are a lot of things to look forward to. You can see the whole list on the Architecture Days page I linked above (and I'll give a special plug to the movie we're showing here at C-SPL).

I always get particularly excited about the scavenger hunt. Dubuque Main Street publishes a set of close-up photos of local buildings and all you have to do is identify them. Simple, right? I grew up here. I've been around these building all my life. They even provide a map showing the area from which they selected buildings. But every year I pull up the sheet of photos and realize that I don't recognize any of them. Apparently, I don't really pay attention to the buildings around me.

Luckily, I'm a librarian. I may not know the answers on this scavenger hunt, but I know how to find them!
(A small interjection: I realize I could just drive/bike/walk around looking for the buildings in the pictures. This seemed like more fun to me. That's why I'm a librarian.)

The theme of Architecture Days this year is Sacred Spaces. Looking at the photos, it seems that all the buildings are churches. So a good first step would be a list of all the churches in the given area. Simple!

The library subscribes to a database called ReferenceUSA. It's basically the fanciest phone book you've ever seen. You can get to it off of our website. Anyone can use it inside the library, and Dubuque residents can use it from home. To start looking for churches in ReferenceUSA, I want to look under U.S. Businesses. I'm trying to do something a little more complicated than just looking for a business by name, so I'll click Custom Search.


A custom search lets me build a search combining several different factors. In this case, I want to look for a specific business type in a specific area. For the type of business, I'll use Keyword SIC/NAICS. SIC and NAICS codes are business classifications defined by the government. We don't have to worry about the specifics, I'm just going to find the code for churches (866107 -- memorize it and impress people at dinner parties!).


Next I need to narrow things down geographically. I've got a lot of options for  a geographic search. It would be simple to just set the city to Dubuque, but that's not quite specific enough. Did you notice the box on the left side of the screen that gives a number for Record Count? As I add new facets to my search, that number changes to show how many businesses match my search. It shows 68 churches in the city of Dubuque, which is a lot more than I want to look at. Besides, if I just searched by city I wouldn't get to use my favorite part of ReferenceUSA:



Map Based Search! In the map interface, I can just draw a shape on the map and search inside it. We've got a few options here. We could select a point and search within a given radius from it. We could map out a driving route and search the businesses along those roads. But for this we want to draw a custom shape. I tried not to get too carried away trying to mark exactly the boundaries from Dubuque Main Street's map. When I was done, ReferenceUSA told me there were 19 churches in the area I selected and gave me a list of their names and addresses.

With a short list and all their addresses, I could certainly go look at all these buildings in person. But the Internet and I have come so far already, why give up on a good thing? Besides, it looks like it might rain. So how can I see all these churches without going outside?




Have you played with Google Street View? Google takes hundreds of photos, up and down all the streets in a town, and then stitches them together into virtual streets. You can essentially walk around town looking at buildings from several angles. Perfect!

I could go to Google Maps and search for each item on my list in order to Street View them, but I've got an idea save myself from jumping back and forth from list to map. I can download my list from ReferenceUSA as either a text file or an Excel spreadsheet. Once I've downloaded the spreadsheet and deleted everything but the addresses, I can paste them to BatchGeo.com.  BatchGeo takes lists of addresses and makes custom Google maps, with all the addresses marked with pins.


On my custom map, I can drag the little orange peg-man to each pin to have a look at the building and compare it to the scavenger hunt photos.


First up, I'll have a look at the pin way at the south of the group, St. Raphael's Cathedral. Some of those windows look awfully familiar . . . .


Architecture Days runs April 7-12. Scavenger hunt entries are due to the Dubuque Main Street office at 1069 Main Street by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, April 16.

Good hunting!

Saturday, March 1, 2014

Garden Gate and Organic Gardening: March Magazines of the Month

Spring is finally on its way, and with the official change of season on March 20th, it's time to start planning your garden. Whether you're looking at grand landscaping or just trying to grow some potted flowers, Carnegie-Stout has the materials to help you get started.

We're highlighting two of our many gardening magazines this month:

Garden Gate began publication in 1995, and has remained a popular source for gardening advice, tips, and information. The magazine's publisher, August Home, is based in Des Moines, Iowa, and the magazine is notable for the lack of advertisements. You can check out an issue from the library, or take a look at the extra features available on their website: www.gardengatemagazine.com 

 Organic Gardening began publication in 1942, and is today part of the Rodale, which publishes several health and wellness magazines. The magazine's decades of focus on the environment provide a wealth of expertise for today's interest in sustainability and the green movement. Organic Gardening is available in both print and digital collections. To check out a digital issue of this or many other magazines through your computer or tablet, check out Zinio. Additional features and content are available through their website: www.organicgardening.com

Previous magazines of the month with a gardening theme have included: Urban Farm and Fine Gardening. Or if you find that you much prefer reading about gardening to actually getting your hands dirty, check out this list of gardening themed mysteries.

Saturday, February 1, 2014

February Magazines of the Month: Mental Floss & Macworld

Mental Floss is a magazine of entertaining trivia, puzzles, intellectual humor, and general edutainment. The magazine was started by two students at Duke University, and has been publishing eight issues a year since 2001. Regular contributors include A.J. Jacobs, Ken Jennings, and John Green. Their website and blog is packed with even more wacky entertainment:  mentalfloss.com

Mental Floss is one of the titles available through our collection of Zinio downloadable magazines.


Macworld is the oldest continuously published magazine specific to the world of Mac products, with their first issue appearing in 1984. Between their print issues, their website (www.macworld.com), and their weekly podcast, Macworld will keep you up to date on all things Apple.

Macworld is also available through our collection of Zinio downloadable magazines.

Monday, August 12, 2013

Database Spotlight: Freegal

You may've heard that Carnegie-Stout now offers downloadable music to our full service patrons (residents of the city of Dubuque who have a current library card, and those non-resident patrons who have purchased access at the platinum level) through Freegal, a new database. Freegal allows you to log in with your library card number and PIN (most likely the last four digits of your phone number), and download up to three free mp3s each week.

It's really that simple! But if you have any questions, run into any problems, or just want to chat about some cool music you discovered in Freegal, you can stop in to the library, give us a call (563) 589-4225, send us an email (yourlibrarian@dubuque.lib.ia.us), or leave us a comment!

The trickiest part about Freegal is finding something to download. There are thousands of songs, and you can search by title or artist, but the browsing options are limited to a handful of descriptive categories. In my first test of Freegal, I got lucky. I found an mp3 download for a South African rap song I've been looking for a legal copy of for years. I also found a download for my favorite song of the summer. I know it's been said that Daft Punk's "Get Lucky" is the anthem of Summer 2013, but personally I've been loving a song off of Two Door Cinema Club's 2010 album.


~ Sarah, Adult Services

Thursday, August 1, 2013

August Magazines of the Month


Our magazines of the month for August are Adventure Cyclist and Runner's World. Two titles to inspire you to get out there and explore the many running and biking trails in the tri-states region! Or to keep you inspired on those days when the weather inhibits outdoor activity.

Adventure Cyclist is a publication of the Adventure Cycling Association, which was formed in 1973. The organization's focus is on bicycle touring in the United States, from local weekend trips to cross country expeditions. Over the years they've expanded coverage to international bicycle adventures, and they provide information, reviews, maps, and more on their website: www.adventurecycling.org

Runner's World began publication in 1966. The magazine started as a publication run from the Kansas home of Bob Anderson, but todayis published in 14 international editions (source). The magazine provides information, tips, and training plans to runners at all levels, and is available as part of our downloadable Zinio collection. You may also enjoy their website: www.runnersworld.com

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Database Spotlight: Zinio

Do you love magazines? Do you look forward to hearing what our Magazine of the Month will be? Do you have a new tablet or laptop, and you're curious what it would be like to read a magazine digitally? Well, Carnegie-Stout has just the resource for you!

In a recent partnership with Dyersville's James Kennedy Public Library, we've added Zinio to our database collection. Zinio is a new tool that allows you read digital copies of some of the periodicals that the library subscribes to in print. With titles ranging from Cosmo to Popular Science, Newsweek to Rolling Stone, there's something for everyone!

To find Zinio, go to the library's homepage: www.dubuque.lib.ia.us and click on the "Research Tools" link on the left-hand side of the screen. This brings you to an alphabetical list of our research databases from which you will be able to open Zinio.

Click on the image to see a larger version.
The trickiest part with getting started using Zinio is that you will have to register twice: once with a library account that will allow you to borrow from the library's collection, and once with Zinio, so that you can read your magazines. First click the purple Create Account button. You'll be asked to enter your library barcode. Only patrons who live in Dubuque or Dyersville are eligible to use Zinio, but everyone is welcome to come into Carnegie-Stout and browse our physical collection!
Click on the image to see a larger version.

Once you have verified your library card and set up a log-in with an email address and password, you'll be taken to the Carnegie-Stout PL and James Kennedy PL Zinio collection. When you locate a title that you want to read, click on the cover image and you'll be directed to Zinio's main site, where you will be asked to register your account in order to read the magazine.
Click on the image to see a larger version.

After you're fully registered, and have added all the titles you would like to read from the Carnegie-Stout PL and James Kennedy PL Zinio page to Your Reading List in Zinio, you'll be all set to enjoy your magazines! Zinio will send you email notifications when new issues of your titles become available, and you'll be able to add or delete titles in the future. Please be aware that the main Zinio site also sells subscriptions to digital issues not available for free through the library, and that some of these titles are adult in nature.
Click on the image to see a larger version.

Those of you with mobile devices should take a look at the Zinio app. It's free to add this app to your device, and will allow you to read the magazines you're borrowing from our collection on the go!
Click on the images to view larger versions.

If you have any questions about Zinio, run into any problems, or would just like a staff member to walk you through the set up process, give us a call (563-589-4225), send us an email (yourlibrarian@dubuque.lib.ia.us), or stop by in person! Don't forget, we offer drop-in tech help from 6:30 to 8:30 every Wednesday evening.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Updates to OverDrive

Good news, everyone! OverDrive, the company that manages our downloadable eBooks and audiobooks, has informed us that our website will transition to their new interface sometime within the first half of March. Their Next Generation website is designed to make it simpler to find and check out books and from what we've seen they've done a great job of it!

We don't anticipate any heartbreak or confusion resulting from the changeover, but if you want to have a peek at what to expect you can watch this video from OverDrive or have a look at this website from a library in Ohio that has already been updated.

If anything in the new site doesn't work as you expect it to, please give us a call or stop by the Reference Desk!

Friday, November 16, 2012

Black Friday, tips to find the deals

The Holiday Season is approaching rapidly, which means that many of us are getting ready to do some serious shopping. Whether you're a Black Friday veteran or novice, Carnegie-Stout has tips and tools to help you plan your attack, but, fair warning, the library will be closed on Thanksgiving and the 23rd so our staff can enjoy the holiday with family.
Never fear though! The number one tip to prepare for Black Friday is to plan ahead (number three: fanny packs, warning! link contains swears). You want to have a shopping list, know where the best bargains are, and when the stores open.

While I've always been a fan of sorting through all the ads in the Thursday paper after stuffing myself with turkey, the internet means that you could've started your planning last week. Luckily this also means you don't have to go from store website to store website, but can find all the Black Friday ads in one place. You still might need to visit the store's pages to verify the local opening hours, but at least you can check if there any deals worth showing up at six a.m. first.

Websites that collect Black Friday Advertisements:
bfads.net
blackfriday.com

Websites that compare prices at various retailers:
www.bizrate.com
www.shopping.com
pricegrabber.com

But maybe you're on the hunt for some particular item, rather than just looking for the best door busters. Wading through dozens of circulars to find which stores have the sales you need, even electronically, can be a headache. If you know exactly what you want, a site that compares prices can be useful, but best bargain doesn't always mean best. First you'll want to compare televisions or blenders or leaf blowers to find which brands and models will do what you need them to.

This is when you should check Consumer Reports (they also have price comparisons). You might be familiar with Consumer Reports from their annual buying guide or their monthly publications, and both are available at Carnegie-Stout. But did you know that Carnegie-Stout also has access to Consumer Reports' online site?


You can find Consumer Reports in our list of Library Research Databases by clicking here. If you are at home you will be asked to enter your library barcode and PIN, but everyone can search their Buying Guides and Recommendations from a computer inside the library. You can even print off your findings for ten cents a page (black & white).

If you're not able to access Consumer Reports from home, and Carnegie-Stout isn't open, you can still read some of their advice at www.consumerreports.org. You can also turn to the product reviews on personal blogs, websites like Amazon (although these are not always trustworthy), or from a trusted friend or neighbor. Alternatively, you can take a look at the product reviews offered by:
Good Housekeeping (we have the magazine to flip through too)
CNET (technology and electronics)

And because librarians are most often asked to help select and operate eReaders, the first place you should check is OverDrive's list of compatible devices. This will tell you if your new eReader will play nicely with our eBooks. And if you're the lucky recipient of a shiny new eReader this holiday season, we'll be here to help you learn how to check out and download those eBooks.

Reviews and comparisons of eReaders:
Consumer Reports (you may need to go through the library's website to see all information)
Good Housekeeping
CNET

And if all this is too much for you, remember, you can always stay home and celebrate Buy Nothing Day instead.

Friday, October 5, 2012

Taking a Trip

Sometimes, we all need a vacation, but planning that vacation can turn into a part-time job full of stresses and headaches. Where to go. When to go. What to pack. How to budget. Where to stay. And all those little details from Airport security to Vaccinations.

The best travel tip I can give you is to start planning early. As much fun as it can be to take an impromptu road trip, but knowing which exit to take to see the world's largest wooden nickel can add so much. Likewise it can be useful to know if a big convention is happening before you find out there's only one hotel room available and it's three times the usual price!

Luckily Carnegie-Stout has the resources to help you get started planning your next trip today. We have everything from books to DVDs to recommended websites - we'll even help you pick the perfect audiobook or walk you through loading up your eReader from our eBook collection.

The first step for planning your trip depends on you. Is there a specific time you are able to travel? You'll want to see what to see what the weather is like at your potential destinations. A beach vacation in rainy season is no good, but neither is the peak of tourist season! If you'll be visiting another country, check to see if your visit overlaps school vacations or holidays like our Thanksgiving when shops are closed and everyone is visiting home.

A good guidebook will give you include advice on these topics, as well as tips for getting around, must-see destinations, recommended hotels and restaurants, and more. You can check our catalog for the latest guidebooks by searching in the subject field for: DESTINATION -- Guidebooks. I recommend using the Subject Keyword option.
Click image to see our Hawaii guidebooks.
While a good guidebook can get you started, some topics require up to the minute information. If you'll be visiting a foreign country there are three websites you should visit: the U.S. State Department, the CDC, and the official tourism page for your destination.

The State Department has instructions on applying for a renewing your passport (you can also visit most local post offices to pick up this information), information on tourist visas, and information for travel safety and warnings for Americans abroad.

Likewise, the CDC will tell you which immunizations you'll need, up to date information for local outbreaks or other concerns, how to locate medical help overseas, as well as general travel tips. You'll also want to check that any medication you'll be bringing with you is legal to have in your possession, and likewise some drugs you can buy over the counter in other countries require a prescription in the U.S.

Other online resources you might find useful:
  • Practice your language skills with Mango Languages
  • Check for airfare deals with a comparative site like Kayak or FareCompare
  • SeatGuru has information for meals, in flight entertainment, and where the good seats are
  • World Airport Guides has maps and other information for airports around the world
  • The TSA will tell you what you can and cannot pack in your checked bags and carry-ons
    • The TSA also maintains a blog, which has pictures of all the strange and dangerous things people try to smuggle onto aircraft.
And of course, Carnegie-Stout has books with general travel tips, as well as guidebooks for cruises, traveling with infants and toddlers, and more.

The Smart Traveler's Passport (910.202 TOR)
Budget Travel magazine, one of several travel magazines available at Carnegie-Stout, compiled this book of reader submitted travel tips. While some of the tips are a little out of date (how many people travel with CD player in 2012?), there's still good information. A tip on page 178 suggests bringing bilingual takeout menus when you travel to a country where you don't read the language and need to know if you're ordering chicken or ox heart.

1001 Smart Travel Tips (910.2 ONE)
Fodor's, publisher of travel guides, has a more recent book of travel tips from their writers, editors, and readers. The organization in this book is very clear, and includes sections on packing, flying with animals, trains, and brief information for many popular destinations.

The Packing Book (910.2 GIL)
In addition to some general travel information, this book tells you the best ways to pack your suitcase or carry-on for short trips or long, business or casual. One highlight are the packing lists that you could copy and then check off as you prepare.

Smart Packing for Today's Traveler (910.2 FOS)
Another detailed packing guide with great illustrations for how to select your travel wardrobe for your destination. The author's advice on page 18 is especially useful: "If you can't lift and maneuver your gear by yourself after you've packed it all, edit the contents down to the amount you can mange alone."

If you don't see the information you need for your next trip in this post stop by the library, give us a call ((563) 589-4225), leave us a comment, or check out the other travel posts we have on the blog. Safe journeys, and drop us a post card if you think of it!

Friday, September 28, 2012

Database Spotlight: NoveList

Are you looking for a book, but can't quite remember the title? Do you need to know what order to read the books in that popular vampire mystery series? Is your favorite author not writing new books fast enough for you? Stop by the Recommendations Desk on the first floor of Carnegie-Stout, give us a call at Ph: (563) 589-4225, or fill out a Personal Recommendations form, and we'll be happy to help you!

But if Carnegie-Stout is closed and you need an answer now, we have a database that can get you started! NoveList has information on thousands of books and authors, and it's one of the first places we check at the Recommendations Desk. Anyone can access NoveList from one of Carnegie-Stout's computers, or from your home if you have a full service library card.

To find NoveList, go to the library's homepage: www.dubuque.lib.ia.us and click on the "Research Tools" link on the left-hand side of the screen. This brings you to an alphabetical list of our research databases from which you will be able to open NoveList. If you are outside of the library, you will be prompted to enter the bar code from the back of your library card and your PIN (usually the last four numbers of your phone number).
Click image to see larger
Once NoveList has loaded, you can use the search box at the top to look for books by author, title, series name, or a combination of keywords. The home page also links to suggested reading lists arranged by genre, and read alike suggestions for currently popular books.

Let's try a practice search. If you read a book with a dog named Chet last month that was part of a mystery series, but you can't remember the title or author and you really want to read the next book, NoveList might have the answer. We'll change the search settings to Series and enter the search terms "Chet" and "dog." Happily there is only one series in NoveList featuring a dog named Chet, so Spencer Quinn's series appears with the books in series order.
Click image to see larger
If you've done a search in Carnegie-Stout's catalog recently, you may've noticed that NoveList also provides the series order in the item record, if you scroll past the part where we tell you if the book is checked in. The best part is that you can click any of the other titles in the series to see if they are on the shelf!
Click image to see larger
NoveList also provides read alike suggestions both in our catalog and on their website. When you are looking at a book, series, or author that you enjoy, look to the upper right hand corner for "Read-alikes from NoveList." You can either click on the suggestions to learn more, or if you hover over a title or author, a pop-up will appear to give you more information.
Click image to see larger
This should get you started in using NoveList, but if you have any questions, the librarians of Carnegie-Stout are here to help you find the answers!

Friday, August 31, 2012

Database Spotlight: Mango Languages

Are you planning a vacation to foreign shores? A long weekend relaxing on a the beaches of Cancun or taking romantic strolls through Paris? Has it been a while since you studied a French or Spanish in high school? Or maybe you're just starting your studies in German or Japanese?

Carnegie-Stout has a database that can help you out! Mango Languages offers interactive, introductory level language practice in 46 different languages. Anyone can access Mango from one of Carnegie-Stout's computers, or from your home if you have a full service library card.

To find Mango, go to the library's homepage: www.dubuque.lib.ia.us and click on the "Research Tools" link on the left-hand side of the screen. This brings you to an alphabetical list of our research databases from which you will be able to open Mango. If you are outside of the library, you will be prompted to enter the bar code from the back of your library card and your PIN (usually the last four numbers of your phone number).

Once Mango loads, you'll be asked to Log In, Create a Profile, or Start Learning. (Note: you can enlarge the images by clicking on them)

You do not need to create a profile or log in to use Mango, but if you do, Mango will track your progress and allow you to pick up where you left off. To create a profile, simply register with an email address and the password of your choice.

Once you have selected Start Learning or logged in, you'll see a screen with all of the available language courses.

In addition to the 46 languages available, there are English courses for non-native speakers. These English courses are designed for people from 15 different language backgrounds. You can select the English courses from the left-hand side of the screen, or you can select the language of your choice from the list in the middle. For today's example, we'll be looking at French.

The French lesson offers some basic information about the language and where it is spoken, in addition to the three language levels: Basic, Complete 1.0, and Complete 2.0. Today we'll be looking at Basic. To start this level, push the button next to Basic which says "Launch." This will open a new window. (Note: you may need to update Adobe Flash Player)

Each level is split into Chapters, and the Chapters into Lessons. If you have created a profile and logged in, Mango will remind you which lessons you have already completed. Although you are more than welcome to repeat any portion you might like to revisit! We'll start with Chapter 1, Lesson 1; to start this lesson we click on the number one under Chapter 1.

Each Lesson starts with an overview of what topics will be covered, and what concepts we'll be learning. Each lesson will include conversations that teach you useful phrases, grammatical concepts, and vocabulary. The text will be shown in English and, in this case, French. You'll want to make sure you have your computer speakers turned on or your head phones plugged in so that you can hear the proper pronunciation. At the end of the lesson there will be questions to help you test your knowledge and review what you've learned.

You may've noticed that at the top of the screen there is an option which says "Translate." This will take you to a feature similar to Babelfish or Google Translate, where text typed in one box will be translated into the language of your choice in the next box. While these tools can be helpful, be warned that the translations are not always perfect.

If this isn't quite your speed or level, Carnegie-Stout does have a good collection of language learning materials in both print and CD Audio. You can find this material in our catalog by doing a subject search for: French language -- Self-instruction (or replace "French" with the language of your choice), or come in and browse the 400s! Or if you're planning a trip, most of our travel guidebooks can be found between 910 and 917 (you might also want to check the DVDs).

Et nous vous souhaitons bon voyage!

Friday, July 27, 2012

Record-breaking rainfall

North Fork of the Little Maquoketa
(click to enlarge)
Image courtesy of Chel H.
It may be hard to believe, but last year at this time the tri-state area was dealing with aftermath of record-breaking rainfall.

On the evening of July 27th, a frontal boundary stalled along the Highway 20 corridor, spawning a series of thunderstorms that inundated the tri-states with record rainfall. Here at the library, we watched the streets outside the library flood briefly and momentarily lost power. Lightening struck and damaged the Bishop's Block Building downtown, but the library escaped with little damage, especially compared to many others in Dubuque, East Dubuque and the surrounding area.

While we're no strangers to flash floods and extreme weather here, the July 27-28 event broke six rainfall records for Dubuque, including the most rainfall ever recorded in a 24-hour period (10.62 inches; previous record of 8.96 in 2002), most rainfall recorded in July (16.01 inches; previous record of 12.68 in 2010) and most rainfall recorded in a single month (16.01 inches, previous record of 15.46 inches in 1965). It also caused the Mississippi River to rise four feet in 12 hours, caused an estimated $2 million in damage, left many homeless and resulted in one fatality.

Mississippi River level
(click to enlarge)
Image courtesy of NOAA
The National Climatic Data Center collects and publishes storm data from around the nation, including observations from weather spotters, photographs and illustrations. To read the report for the July 27-28, 2011 event, visit the NDCD's Storm Data Publication website, and select 2011-07. A .pdf report will be created; information from the event begins on page 180.

For news accounts, the library offers access to past issues of the Telegraph Herald to regular card holders. Just go to our Research Databases page and select NewsBank. Login with your library card number and PIN, and then select Telegraph Herald from the list of available newspapers. Click here for a list of selected articles about the event (login required to view articles).

And for a look back at some extreme weather events - from Union park to the floods of 1965, 1993 and 2008 - check out these books:
17th Street Flood by cypotter



Dubuque flood (behind John Deere) by ZimmyBuffett



Sources: National Climatic Data Center, NOAA, National Weather Service, and the Telegraph Herald.