Publication History

Beginning with the July, 1915 issue, the Monthly List of Changes in Personnel was incoporated into a publication, of a larger scope, which also contained a series of short notes and comments designed to be helpful, to station officals and the Central Office, in the conduct of Weather Bureau affairs. It was believed that a medium for the exchange of views, methods and tips would be of value to Weather Bureau personnel. To secure this desired result, every employee was invited to contribute any helpful suggestion or item of interest, which was forwarded to the Chief of the Bureau for approval and publication. These notes were not intended to supersede regulations, circulars or circular letters, nor regarded as instructions to be rigidly followed, but to conveyed an informal interpretation or application of the formal instructions. The Central Office believed that many experienced Weather Bureau personnel had developed effective yet simplistic workflow methods that should be shared. Topics and Personnel was intended to serve as a clearing-house of ideas rather than imposing regulations.

Scope of coverage

The NOAA Central Library maintains the collection of Weather Bureau Topics and Personnel from July 15, 1915 through August 1965. There have been several title changes beginning with Topics and Personnel to Weather Bureau Topics in 1948 and finally Topics in 1961. The July 1941 issue is also called the Fiftieth Anniversary Issue, July 1891-July 1, 1941.

How to locate issues of Topics and Personnel

Select the year of the issue of Topics and Personnel that you wish to view from the menu below, then press the "View Report" button.

Credit

Funding for imaging this project was provided by the NOAA Climate Database Modernization Program (CDMP), National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC. Technical support for website was provided by National Ocean Data Center (NODC), Silver Spring, MD.

Please credit the NOAA Central Library Data Imaging Project when using this resource. We encourage you to share the results of your research with any of the staff members below.

Contact Information

If you have questions or comments concerning the images, or you need further assistance, please contact:
Library.Reference@noaa.gov, 301-713-2600 ext. 124
Diana.L.Abney@noaa.gov, 301-713-2600 ext. 121
Mary.Lou.Cumberpatch@noaa.gov, 301-713-2600 ext. 129