Congressional Serial Set

The U.S. Congressional Serial Set, commonly referred to as the Serial Set, contains House and Senate Documents and Reports bound by a session of Congress.

The Serial Set began publication with the 15th Congress, 1st Session (1817). It includes, among other things, committee reports related to bills and other matters, presidential communications to Congress, treaty materials, certain executive department publications, and certain non-governmental publications.

About the Congressional Serial Set

U.S. Congressional Serial Set: What It Is and Its History by Virginia Saunders, Congressional Documents Specialist, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, DC.

Serial Set Indexing

CIS U.S. Serial Set Index (LC Call Number Z1223.Z9 C65)

About the Inventory: Greater Saint Louis Metro Area’s United States Congressional Serial Set

Washington University, Saint Louis University, the Saint Louis City Public Library, and the University of Missouri-Saint Louis have joined to create a complete inventory of the United States Congressional Serial Set holdings in the Saint Louis Metro Area.

Please note that Washington University School of Law holds a nearly complete set of Serial Set microfiche ranging from the 15th Congress (1817) to the 91st Congress (1971). They also possess a complete set of microfiche documenting Congressional records prior to the publication of the Serial Set spanning the 1st Congress (1789) to the 14th Congress (1817).

Please see the table below for the complete inventory of holdings for the United States Congressional Serial Set in the Saint Louis Metro Area:

Inventory by Congress

19th Century Congresses (15th – 56th)
20th Century Congresses (57th – 72nd)
20th Century Congresses (73rd-88th)
20th Century Congresses (89th-106th)
21st Century Congresses (107th – )

Additional Congressional Serial Set Resources

Resources at St. Louis Area Libraries

Online Resources

• Congress.gov | The Library of Congress’ website makes legislative materials available online.
• A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates 1774 to 1875 | Digitized documents from the 23rd to the 64th Congress (1833-1917) and brings together online the records and acts of Congress from the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention through the 43rd Congress, including the first three volumes of the Congressional Record, 1873-75.
• Office of the Clerk, House of Representatives | Contains information about House activities ranging from partial coverage from the 1st Congress forward to complete coverage of more recent Congressional Sessions.
• ProQuest’s Congressional Publications | Allows users to track Congressional legislation, find Congressional hearings, committee reports and prints, legislative histories of public laws, Congressional Records, and information on members of Congress—access to the historical Congressional Serial Set.
• U.S. Government Printing Office | This site allows users to browse the catalog of House, Senate, and Treaty documents by Congress, beginning with the 104th Congress (1995-1996).
• U.S. Senate Congressional Record | This website contains information concerning the activities of the House and Senate. It is searchable from the 85th Congress to the present (1957 to the present).
• The University of Maryland | The University of Maryland is in the process of digitizing Serial Set maps.