The Palo Alto City Library Interlibrary Loan Service borrows books and copies of periodical articles from other libraries for our patrons that Palo Alto libraries don't own. Palo Alto City Library, in turn, lends material to other libraries to fill their patrons' needs. Through ILL, Palo Alto Library patrons have access to all of the nation's library resources. Most requests are filled within 4 to 6 weeks.
Forms are also available at each library.
Provide the periodical title, article author and title, volume and issue number, date, and pages needed. What follows are answers to some frequently asked questions about the ILL service. Note that many libraries will not lend genealogy, reference books, or new popular material. No one library may receive more than five copies from a particular journal published in the last five years in any one year period. We keep records of photocopies requested and may not be able to submit your request if we have reached the limit of copies allowed.