• named in honour of Henry George Thode (1910-1997), Professor of Chemistry and Nuclear Technology, first Principal of Hamilton College and past President of McMaster University (1961-1972)
• opened in 1978
• seating capacity of 560
• houses the collections in all the various disciplines of science and engineering
• Current holdings as of 2001:

Monographs	135,881 vol.
Periodicals	140,697 vol.
Gov pubs	20,300 vol.
Technical reports	1,630 vol.
Reference collection	6,528 vol.
Theses	3,372 vol.	(prior to 1983 only and located on the lower level; theses after 1983 are part of the monograph collection)

The Library's online catalogue, provides access to books, periodicals, and government publications. The book collection is classified by the Library of Congress classification system and shelved by call number. The periodicals are shelved by title. Government publications are classified by the CODOC system and are shelved by their CODOC number. Most technical reports are not catalogued, but are arranged on the shelves by the technical report number. The Library also holds a microform collection of older books, periodicals and technical reports. All materials are on open shelves and accessible to patrons during library hours.