There are two options for searching the catalogue: simple and advanced. These options allow you to search for individual records containing or missing a keyword or to browse entire collections.

Simple search

Use the search box (located top and centre) on the Home page to run a simple search. Type in a word or words you want to search and the catalogue will return a list of records which include them. In order to return the search results quickly, the catalogue will only search a record's Title and Description fields. No other fields, including the GCA Reference, can be searched using this option. If you search for multiple words, the catalogue will display records which contain all of them (though the words will not necessarily appear together in the record). To search on a specific phrase such as St Kentigern, type it with double quotation marks: "St Kentigern".

A number of popular searches have been prepared for your convenience and are available to click below the search box. These are: Glasgow Corporation, Parochial Board, Parish Council, Poor relief, Admission register, Log book, Register of Interments, Register of Cremations and Register of Lairs. Clicking one of these will automatically populate the search box and initiate the search.

Advanced search

You can perform an advanced search by clicking on the Advanced Search link at the top right corner of the search box on the home page. Alternatively, click on Search at the top of the home page. The Advanced Search form will allow you to search on a single field or a combination of the below fields.

• Any Text: as with a simple search, you can enter either a single word or multiple words. Specific phrases must be enclosed with double quotation marks ("St Kentigern"). Searching on only an asterisk in this field will return every record in the catalogue. This field is used to search every text field in the records on the catalogue but it will not search on the Date or GCA Reference fields.
• GCA Reference: either a full or partial reference may be entered here. For example, TD1734 will return only the fonds level record for the Scottish Women's Hospitals collection. TD1734/19/1/2 will return only the record for the Scottish Women's Hospitals General Photograph album. However, using an asterisk will widen the search. For example, TD1734* will return every record in the Scottish Women's Hospitals collection. TD1734/19* will return every photograph in the same collection.
• Title: as with a simple search, you can enter either a single word or multiple words. Specific phrases must be enclosed with double quotation marks ("minute book"). The Title fields of both collection records and single items (such as minute books or a letter) will be searched.
• Description: as with a simple search, you can enter either a single word or multiple words. Specific phrases must be enclosed with double quotation marks ("cause of death"). Description fields of all records in the catalogue will be checked. As not all records have information in their Description fields, your search may return no results. It is worthwhile running the same search using the Any Text field.
• Date: this field is most effective when you use comparative search terms. For example, to find all items created in the year 1820, you can type in 1820 but this will bring up records which have covering dates that include 1820 e.g. 1718 - 1913. However, you can sort the results chronologically by clicking on the Date field on the Search Results page. Search terms such as circa, c or century cannot be used.
• Level: this field contains a drop-down menu which allows you to search for particular hierarchical levels in a collection. The options are: File, Fonds, Item, Series, Sub-Fonds, Sub-Series, Sub-Sub-Fonds and Sub-Sub-Series. For example, selecting Fonds will retrieve and display all the collection (fonds level) descriptions and will list all the collections in the catalogue. Selecting Item will retrieve and display all the item level records in the catalogue.

It is also possible to use extra search options as part of the advanced search. As standard, a search will retrieve records with all the word(s) you typed in. However, this default search criteria can be changed by clicking on Refine Search Criteria below either the Any Text, Title or Description fields. There are three refinements you can make to your search:

• With all the words: boolean AND search. For example, James Stewart will retrieve all records which contain the words James AND Stewart.
• With at least one of the words: boolean OR search. For example, James Stewart will retrieve all records which contain either James OR Stewart OR both James AND Stewart.
• Without the words: boolean NOT. This is used to exclude undesired results retrieved from search terms entered in other fields.

What will the Search Results page look like?

The page will list all the records found, one per line. The total number of records found is listed at the top of the display. The default view is 20 records per page but this can be changed by selecting a different option from the drop-down menu. You can use the Next, Last, First and Previous buttons at the bottom of each page to work your way through the results.

The display will sort each record into five columns headed with the following field names:

• Ref No: this reference is how the catalogue creates the hierarchical structure of each collection. An oblique (/) in a reference signals a new level e.g. D/BW/3/1.
• GCA Reference: this is the unique identifier given to each item in a collection during cataloguing. This is the reference which should be used to enquire about, or when requesting to view, an item.
• Title: this will either be the title recorded on the item itself or an artificial title supplied by the cataloguing archivist. Artificial titles are normally given in square brackets. For example, [Diary of Thomas Cairns Livingstone].
• Description: this contains information that describes the item. The content of this field varies from record to record but can include a description of all the series in a collection, a summary of a diary's major entries or a list of the type of information captured in a particular item.
• Date: this refers to the date(s) of creation of a collection or item. It may give a specific date (3 Mar 1875), an estimated date (c1875 or 19th century) or covering dates (1875 - 1910).

How do I sort the records in the Search Results' list?

You can sort the list of results according to the field of your choice by clicking on the column heading. By default, records appear in Ref No order. However, you can also sort records alphabetically (A-Z) by GCA Reference, Title and Description or by Date (early to late).

How can I find out more about a record displayed in the Search Results' list?

To view a full record description, click on the Ref No. This Record View will show a single record and will display many more fields than in the Search Results. The Record View will include Notes, Format, Level, Extent, Creator Name, Administrative History, Access Conditions, Copyright, Language, Finding Aids, Related Material and Publication Note. However, if the field is blank it will not appear at all on the Record View.

If you click on the Ref No again once you're in Record View, you will be taken to the Hierarchy Browser. This shows the collection's structure and how that item fits into the structure as well as how it relates to other items in the collection.

To return to the Record View, click on the Record link above the words Hierarchy Browser. Alternatively, use the back button on your browser.

How do I browse the catalogue?

You can browse in several ways:

• To browse a single collection: use either a simple or Advanced Search. From your Search Results' list, click on the Ref No of a particular entry to view the full Record View for a particular entry. Click on the Ref No again to view the Hierarchy Browser.

  You can use the + and – signs to expand and contract groups of records within a collection. Clicking on a title in the Hierarchy Browser will display the catalogue entry for that record. When viewing the entry, clicking on the Ref No/GCA Ref will bring you back to the Hierarchy Browser.You can use the + and – signs to expand and contract groups of records within a collection. Clicking on a title in the Hierarchy Browser will display the catalogue entry for that record. When viewing the entry, clicking on the Ref No/GCA Ref will bring you back to the Hierarchy Browser.

• To browse a collection by Ref No: use an Advanced Search. If you know a collection's Ref No (for example, D/BW for the records of the Glasgow Corporation Baths and Wash-Houses Department), you can use this to browse the collection. For example, entering D/BW* in the Ref No field will retrieve all records with references starting with D-BW. Note that the Ref No is different to the collection's GCA Reference (which is D-BW). The two references are not interchangeable. If your search is unsuccessful, check whether it's the correct field you're typing a search term into. You can then select a Record View and enter the Hierarchy Browser as described above.
• To browse all collections by Level: use an Advanced Search. Go to Level, select Fonds and click Search. Every collection in the catalogue will be listed in the Search Results' list. You can then select a Record View and enter the Hierarchy Browser as described above.
• To browse all records: using Advanced Search, type an asterisk into the Any Text field and click search. All records in the catalogue will be returned. You can then select a Record View and enter the Hierarchy Browser as described above.