I Wonder Who\u27s Using Us Now: Hurricane Katrina\u27s Influence on Use of Special Collections at the University of New Orleans Library

Hurricane Katrina (August 29, 2005) necessitated the temporary closure of the University of New Orleans, including its Earl K. Long Library. When the university reopened with a smaller student body, librarians in the Louisiana and Special Collections Department observed that patterns of research use of the collections had changed. This article analyzes data gathered during eight six-month periods (2003-2007) to compare the number of research queries, the institutional affiliations of the researchers, and the collections that were requested before and after the storm